


Frozen memories

by Midnight_skies



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, Broken Promises, Character Death, Character Turned Into a Ghost, Clay | Dream-centric (Video Blogging RPF), Friendship, Ghost Wilbur Soot, How Do I Tag, Hurt Clay | Dream (Video Blogging RPF), Implied/Referenced Character Death, Memory Loss, Undead
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-26
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:21:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 25,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28345320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Midnight_skies/pseuds/Midnight_skies
Summary: He didn't want to be the bad guy people were scared of.. He didn't- he wasn't- he couldn't be.. He had no memories. He had no idea if it was true.Maybe he was..------------------Dream had only wanted to keep his friends safe, seeing the anger and hate on their faces hurt him deeply. They hated him. Didn't want to be near him......the happy memories made it hurt more.Fortunately for Dream, the memories don't stay with him for much longer..-----Discontinued ‼All designs for this au can be found on the #mcyt_frozenmemories tag ‼ thank you to my friend lavender for drawing them for me :)!!
Relationships: Alexis | Quackity & GeorgeNotFound & Sapnap, Alexis | Quackity & Sapnap, Cara | CaptainPuffy & Clay | Dream, Clay | Dream & Floris | Fundy, Clay | Dream & GeorgeNotFound & Sapnap (Video Blogging RPF), Clay | Dream & TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), GeorgeNotFound & Sapnap (Video Blogging RPF), Niki | Nihachu & Wilbur Soot, Ranboo & TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Ranboo & Wilbur Soot, Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit & Phil Watson, Toby Smith | Tubbo & Wilbur Soot, Wilbur Soot & Technoblade & TommyInnit & Phil Watson
Comments: 157
Kudos: 1000





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Uhh hello!! I'm writing this while really sick :))!!
> 
> I know there are probably other fanfiction like this but I haven't read any; because I don't know the names. I hope you guys enjoy as this has been plauging my thoughts for a while and I'm excited to write uh my first ever fanfiction. [The other one on my account doesn't count it's just oc notes :)]
> 
> Sorry if things don't make sense I'm new to the fandom, don't know much lore and I'm really sick rn 
> 
> That's it for now :] 
> 
> ~L

The argument had been rough, rough enough that Dream couldn't look his friends in the face. George had gone as far as to shout, "Just tell me you hate me!".  
That had been enough to break through Dream's man made iron wall, and all his arguments turned to dust. 

"I just wanted to keep you safe!" George scoffed at him, Dream knew that wasn't a good arguement. For once he was powerless, standing infront of his two best friends, he felt like nothing. "What if you had been inside, George?" He asked the teen infront of him, George was wearing his usual shirt and jeans however he also wore a gold crown with blue jewels embedded. A crown that Dream had just taken from him. "Dream, you took the throne from me, what are we to you?"  
Dream shuffled, moving his weight from one foot to the other, he felt so small, like he would break if they shouted any more. "..you guys are my friends- You and Sapnap! Come on we've always been frie-". George rolled his eyes, turning away from him. Sapnap seemed almost red with anger, Quackity who stood beside him looked on in disappointment. 

“Come on… He’s not worth it George. He doesn’t care about anything but himself and the discs. He doesn’t really care about us. He made that very clear,” Sapnap said and George just sighed and nodded. Sapnap gave Dream a nasty glare and nothing else, turning around and walking away down the path. Quackity sent a glare that rivaled Sapnap’s before turning to follow him. George on the other hand looked at Dream for just a little bit longer… Right before turning around with a huff and leaving the blonde standing there all alone. Dream stood there alone. The mask on his face hiding his tears that he could no longer hold back, he let them silently slide down his face as he watched them walk out of his line of sight. Wrapping his arms around himself for fake comfort, he let his feelings take over as he stood there alone.Then, despite his heavy heart, he turned in the opposite direction and began walking, away from The SMP and away from his friends.

\---------------

Dream seemingly disappeared after that. No one caught sight of him and just like most had with Technoblade, they ignored it. Everyone had their own opinions of him, some were mad and others didn't care at all. The fact however stayed the same. No one went looking for him, despite the fact he was part of the rumours floating around for quite a while. However, despite how often Dream would normally disappear to get resources or torment those who lived away from Manburg, this time was different.

It had been a week or two.. atleast that's what Dream thought, he hadn't bothered to keep track. He had to keep walking, the further away from everyone the better, it seemed stupid, but maybe they would be happy if he wasn't there. Unfortunately, he was out of food and low on sleep, with all the mobs he had to keep fighting it was rough. The grief from his only friends hating him had burned into his brain, and warped his thoughts making sure he was never happy. He felt disgusting, but he didn't have time to stop and let his emotions reign superior, he had to keep walking. It was cold, and just after dawn, Dream was nearing a snow biome, maybe once he was through here he could start a new life, far away from everyone he hurt. Maybe..

As he walked down the hill, the ground was dusted with snow, and looking at the sky, it was blanketed by clouds. Dream could see small clouds of his breath as he walked, not soon after the clouds above him opened, dropping snow flakes onto the ground beneath them. The blonde reached for his hood, pulling it over his head as his other hand brushed the snow from his hair. He shuddered and wished he had longer sleeves, the ground was now covered with snow and it seemed to only be getting heavier. Dream cursed his luck, shoving his hands in his pockets as he tried to keep warm, he was out in a snow storm with no shelter in sight. Despite how hungry he was, he started walking slightly faster, close to the speed of jogging, the wind was picking up and if he didn't hurry he'd probably be stuck in snow to his chest. As he moved he looked around him, searching for somewhere he could wait out the storm.

He didn't have time to remove his hands from his jeans pockets when the ground suddenly rushed towards him. "Shit-" Dream pushed himself into a sitting position, a rock now lay over the snow, wet from where it had been covered. This wasn't going well, his clothes are now soaked and sticking to him, that rock had not only tripped him and ruined his only chance at warmth, but by the feel of his left ankle, he had definitely twisted it. This was going to be a problem, especially with how the wind now whipped at his hair, using his hood to slap him in the face. The wind falling faster than ever and no shelter in sight. Dream slowly stood up, not without a struggle, and kept walking, alot slower now. His left foot dragging behind him as he moved. The sun peeked out from behind the clouds now high in the sky, it must be around midday. He kept moving, his arms out of his pockets, just incase he fell again. His hood had long been abandoned, leaving his hair to be adorned with snow. His stomach grumbled loudly and he bit his lip, he probably wouldn't be able to walk much further in this state.

The sky now blocked out the sun, leaving only the cold and wet below. Dream was freezing and was close to giving up, but he wasn't anywhere near shelter and definitely wasn't far enough from The SMP. Looking down at his numb hands and the jeans stuck to his skin with ice and snow. As he was walking he spotted a small snowdrop that still stood above the snow. He crouched next to it, reaching out to it with his almost blue fingers. If this flower could make it in these conditions, there was no reason he couldn't. With renewed strength, Dream started walking again, of course not as fast as he could have due to his limp. Through the heavy snow fall he could see a few trees, that would be enough shelter to wait this out, especially with how heavy it was falling. Dream thanked the small snow drop for giving him the strength to keep going. Halfway to the trees he heard a crack underneath the snow, he brushed it off as a twig and kept moving, not having anymore time to waste. 

Dream should have taken the crack as a warning. Another crack sounded through the snow and then another, until dream realised what he was standing on. Feeling the colour drain from his face, Dream tried to move away. Knowing that underneath him must have been a frozen over lake, covered with enough snow that he couldn't tell that it wasn't solid ground. As other crack reached his ears, he was suddenly in freezing water, flailing as he tried to reach the surface, his left leg too sore to move and his other muscles seizing up. He felt himself being dragged under, his lungs burning as he held the oxygen in. How deep was this lake? Was there a chance he could get back up.. as the light faded and dark spots filled his vision, Dream silently took defeat. Watching the air bubbles that exploded from his mouth rise above him, Dream closed his eyes, being taken into the cold arms of the dark. Where he would stay for enternity.. He could feel his breath and strength leaving him slowly as he cried, his tears mixing with the water of the lake, disappearing before they could even be seen. He didn’t want to die alone but it was inevitable… no one would find him in time all he could do was say a silent sorry to his only friends. 'Sorry Sapnap.. Sorry George.. I should have been better..' and the darkness closed the curtains on his story.

\-----------

Tommy had been stuck inside for days. He had been bored to death, which inevitably meant annoying everyone else in the house. When the snow finally stopped he immediately went outside the second he finished breakfast. Not after Phil forced him into a jacket and scarf, but nevertheless he was outside as soon as possible. Wilbur followed him outside, he said he'd watch Tommy incase he wandered too far again. 

"Wilbur let's make a hot lady out of the snow!" Tommy yelled, already rolling a ball of snow in the front garden. Wilbur laughed softly but agreed to the young blonds idea, "I'll ask Phil for clothes so you can dress her Tommy, try not to stray too far while I'm inside". However, Tommy was already sprinting towards the trees, his breath fogging infront of him, "Ok Wilbur! I'm just going to get sticks for her arms!!". Wilbur shook his head at the younger boys enthusiam and headed back into the house.

Tommy was running through the forest when he heard a noise, he froze... maybe he should go back.. but he was also curious. Aslong as he stayed a safe distance away, they probably wouldn't hear or see him, unless they were wolves of course. He held onto the sticks he'd gathered in one hand, and held a rather long and pointy stick in the other, hoping it would make him look intimidating incase he was spotted. As he got closer to the noise he figured out it was crying, trudging through the snow he realised he was near the lake that Techno warned him not to go near.. it wasn't deep, but the water was below freezing and could be dangerous. Tommy stepped out from behind the trees and saw a figure sitting in the middle of the lake, right next to a huge hole in the ice. They had their back to them, but Tommy could tell that they must have been around fourteen or fifteen by the look of them, they had sandy blond hair which was was covered in snow flakes and wore clothes that couldn't possibly be keeping them warm, a purple and light blue sweater, dark blue jeans with a rather large rip in one leg and no socks or shoes. Tommy had to warn them about the lake.. or maybe they already knew and someone was under the water.. but who would be out here? It had started snowing nearly five days ago.. 

Mustering up the courage he called out to them, "Hey! Get away from the lake- it's dangerous! Did someone fall i-" he dropped all the sticks he had gathered, the person crying had turned towards him, it was unmistakable who it was.. but Tommy still couldn't believe it. It was Dream, that mask would be recognized anywhere.. except now his mask seemed alot more sad, small icicles hanging off it and tear streaks running down from the eyes. It had to be Dream, but why did he look so young? Why was he out here.. Tommy's questions were interrupted as this new Dream spoke up.

"..W-who are you..?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tommy found someone at the lake while wandering around outside. Once he sees who it is however.. it seems to raise questions about what happened

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nfndnfdn!! Thank you for all the wonderful feedback on the last chapter,,! You guys are so nice !!
> 
> Thanks to those who checked up on me,, I am still sick but it looks to be improving and I have no symptoms of Covid so it's all A-okay!!
> 
> Please keep in mind that I haven't been in the fandom very long, if any characters seem ooc I apologise and will try to keep more in character :)!!
> 
> -L

Tommy stood frozen in place, the cold must be getting to him.. or the nerves maybe. Whatever it was Tommy was not dealing with it, he ignored the question aimed at him and turned around to pick up the sticks he had dropped. Once he had gathered them all, he stood up only to see the figure standing or actually floating infront of him, because their feet were definitely not touching the ground. Due to how close they were Tommy could have used this chance to look at them more closely, however, he did not. "AAAah What the fuck!" He yelled out, falling over as he tried to step away and scrambling backwards in the snow as he tried to escape the looming figure. The figure, who seemed to be only slightly shorter than Tommy stepped forward again, this led to a stream of no's exploding out of Tommy's mouth.

\--------------

Wilbur closed the front door behind him, holding a bundle of clothes, his pile consisted of; an old sun hat, a pink scarf, a large trench coat and a pair of sun glasses. Hopefully these would be good enough for Tommy's hot lady, however when Wilbur reached the snow pile.. Tommy was nowhere to be seen. "..Tommy?" The ghost called out, moving towards the trees where he had last seen his younger brother. He didn't call out again until he was sure Phil wouldn't hear, he didn't want to worry him. "..Tommy?" He called out, shuffling the clothes around so he could fit them under one arm, he was about to call his name again when he heard a noise- "Fuck- Get away you creepy blue bastard!" Wilbur let out a sigh of relief, that was Tommy.. he always had a more creative way of letting his feelings be known, Phil didn't let him shout curses inside because of noise he caused... wait why was Tommy cursing? Wilbur went the direction he had heard the noise come from, moving faster than usual. 

As Wilbur cleared the trees, the first thing he saw was a hole in the lake, immediately he rushed over there, feet floating just inches above the ice. Once he reached the cracked ice, he looked down into the water, the lake wasnt deep and he could see the bottom so he began searching desperately for Tommy on the bottom of the death lake. Wilbur felt true fear.. Tommy knew not to go here, especially with how thin the ice was.. he kept searching, his eyes scanning the water when he suddenly heard a thud. Turning his head so fast it probably would have hurt if he was still alive, he spotted Tommy, he had fallen over the pile of clothes Wilbur had dropped in his rush to the lake. "Tommy!" Wilbur called, floating over towards him, Tommy was already scrambling to get up of the snow, his jacket and pants wet from the snow and ice stuck to them, "..Tommy where were-" Wilbur's sentence was cut short as Tommy ran behind him pointing at the trees, "That dickhead keeps following me!" He shouted, refusing to move from behind Wilbur. Wilbur followed where he was pointing and felt his jaw drop at what he saw, a boy just shorter than Tommy seemed to be walking through the trees, he definitely wasn't in clothes suited for this weather, he would have offered him the clothes he brought out but they were soaked with snow and- oh.. as the boy got closer, Wilbur caught sight of the mask he wore, "..Dream?"

The boy stopped in his tracks, "Who are you..?" Wilbur cocked an eyebrow in confusion, but quickly realized what was infront of him. Dream didn't remember him.. he looked younger.. the hole in the lake. "..You- You died.. what happened?" He floated towards the boy, Tommy squealing and pleading Wilbur not to go towards him, Wilbur stopped just infront of the other boy, he was definitely floating, if only just slightly. His left foot also seemed alot more transparent than his other foot.. Wilbur could just barely see it. The boys fingers and toes were a mix of purple and blue and seemed to be shaking constantly, he must have died in the lake, but why was he out here..? "Dream.. do you remember who you are?" Wilbur asked slowly, once the boy nodded, he moved onto the next question, "Do you remember what happened?" The boy thought for a moment, Wilbur waited for an answer, instead after a minute the the other ghost began shaking as the sound of a desperate sob escaped them. The brothers stood there silently and awkwardly as he cried, Wilbur being the first to move and comfort him, "it's okay Dream.. you don't have to remember everything straight away.. I didn't either" he comforted the shorter ghost, pulling him into a hug as Tommy continued to awkwardly stand there. For awhile it was just the noise of Dream's ragged breaths as he tried to calm down, then Tommy spoke up, "it's going to start snowing again.." he pointed at the clouds above them, and the brothers shared a look, before Wilbur responded, "Any ideas?"

\----------

The snow was just getting heavy as the front door opened, revealing Tommy and Wilbur, the younger of the two covered in snow and ice, his nose red from the cold, the older was carrying a pile of clothing which seemed larger than it had when he first carried it out. Tommy took off his boots at the door before Phil could remind him and the two of them hurried to Tommy's room, leaving Phil and Techno in the living room by themselves, Phil with his mouth still open from his unsaid greeting. Techno hadn't even put his book down, however he still replied, "They are probably cold.. that's what they get for not coming in immediately when it started snowing again". Phil just laughed in response, "Just surprised Tommy didn't trek snow everywhere for once.. though.." he stood up from his place on the couch to check the window, "I wonder why they never finished their snowmen..". Techno moved, but only to put another log on the fire which had been burning low, "I'm sure Tommy called them 'Hot ladies' Phil." The older man only smiled, and sat back down on the couch next to his son.

They made it to Tommy's room without any trouble, that was until Tommy sneezed and the pile of clothes spoke "..bless you.." the brothers laughed quietly, "dreammm" Tommy drawled, "you weren't supposed to speak until we said you could!!" The pile of clothes moved slightly, "..oh sorry.." it whispered. Tommy face palmed as Wilbur laughed. Wilbur carefully placed the pile of clothes on Tommy's bed, "..you can come out now Dream.. it's safe!" The scarf moved as Dream stretched out, having been curled up to conceal himself in the pile of clothes. He took a moment to look around the room before his face lit up, "Tommy your room looks super cool!!" Tommy smiled, "thanks big man, I'm glad you think it looks cool, that mask makes you look like you are crying though" Tommy had meant it as a joke, Wilbur understood that but he looked to Dream just incase it upset him.. however neither of them expected Dream to take off the mask and lay it to the side, flashing a bright smile, "Now can you see my smile?" He asked through the toothy grin, pointing at it as he did so. Wilbur smiled, he was just like another little brother, he looked to Tommy who was standing with his mouth hanging open, "Wilbur! He actually has a face!!" Tommy whisper shouted, not wanting to be overheard by his family members downstairs.. neither brother were sure how they would react to this quite just yet... for now they had some work to do.

"Ok Dream, I'm going to go outside, when I knock on the door and come back inside I'm Phil, ok? We are going to practice what you do when they knock" Wilbur explained, hand in the door handle, Tommy was lying on his stomach on the bed while Dream sat next to him, his legs crossed infront of himself, he nodded. Wilbur opened the door and closed it behind him, now outside the room he took a deep breath and knocked, hopefully it wouldn't take too long to teach Dream what to do. Opening the door he stepped inside to see the wardrobe doors wide open and Tommy sitting awkwardly on the bed with a mask next to him, well.. it was a good third attempt. Atleast Dream didn't ask Wilbur why he had changed his name this time. "Ok Dream, that time was really good!" Wilbur encouraged, he watched as the young ghosts round face appeared from behind one of Tommy's shirts, a bright smile on his face, his freckles highlighting the glow on his face from the praise. "How about we try one more time, okay? Remember to take your mask and clothes the doors, alright?" Dream gave a vigorous nod as he floated back to the bed next to Tommy. Wilbur exited the room once again, closing the door behind him, then he knocked.. and opened the door, Dream was nowhere to be seen and Tommy seemed to be relaxed too, which means this practice was making it easier on him to act aswell. "Well done both of you!" Wilbur cheered, at the success, "Now remember Dream, if it's me or Tommy, we will knock twice and try not to leave without us incase you get caught, ok?" Dream nodded once again, they had told him not to speak too often incase they were heard, he seemed to be taking that rule very seriously.

It didn't take much longer for the two brothers to teach Dream a couple other signals and hiding spots, incase they were ever needed, however by the time they were finished, it was growing dark. "Tommy! You need to eat dinner!! Go get some food or you'll starve, I'll stay up here with Dream, we'll be in my room!" Wilbur showed Tomm downstairs, before taking one of Dream's ever cold hands and taking him inside his own room. Wilbur's room was smaller than the others, mostly because he didn't really need it, it had a bed, a desk with a lamp and a board on the wall that had hundreds of little photos, notes and letters stuck to it. The room had one window, there was a flower box on the sill filled with different blue flowers. As Wilbur closed the door behind him, he caught Dream looking at the photos he had stuck up. Floating towards the blond he pointed at one with a short brown haired boy in the background, standing next to the red brick house, "Do you know them, Dream?" Wilbur asked, Dream took a closer look at the boy, he wore dark blue jeans and a blue shirt, but one thing stuck out to Dream, "... I know those glasses.." Wilbur nodded and encouraged him to see if he could remember anything else, but the younger ghost unfortunately couldn't. 

While Wilbur was explaining how he used the photos, letters and notes to help him remember things, they heard a loud shout, "Tommy do not bring food upstairs!" There was a thump and then Tommy replied, "Phillll Wilbur doesn't have to eat in the kitchen!" He groaned, his voice getting quieter as he walked back downstairs. "Wilbur doesn't eat, Tommy!!" Phil called back. Wilbur waited until he was sure no one was coming upstairs before turning back to Dream, only to see he was no longer on the bed and was currently admiring the flowers on Wilbur's window sill, floating over to him Wilbur gave a smile, Dream definitely wasn't the person he used to be.. maybe the would make it easier for Phil and Techno to accept him in, but despite all that, they would probably have to let the others know, especially if Dream were to ever get his memories back, he made a mental note to get Dream to write everything that he remembered down, but for now.. answering the excited teens questions on what the flowers were called would be enough until Tommy was finished eating at the sun finally set. Then in the morning.. they would make a plan on how to let Phil know, maybe they should leave Techno out of it entirely.

For now though, it was calm.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As it night falls, the little family settle to sleep. All rooms quiet except for Tommy's, where the youngest member of the family, speaks to the ghost at the end of his bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey!!
> 
> I wanted to leave a quick note:: I'm really far behind on my big New year's art piece,, so if the updates drop off completely it's only because I'm working to get the art done!! Being sick put me behind where I'd like to be so don't worry if you don't hear anything from me :))

The house was growing quiet, Techno as usual would be the first to head to bed. However, he opened Tommy's door without knocking, which would have caused huge complications in their plan if Dream hadn't been in Wilbur's room looking over the pictures on his board. He bade goodnight to the two, who quickly returned the gesture, Tommy's a little louder than necessary, and then moved to his own room, neither brother moved until they heard the door's lock click. Wilbur immediately raised off the bed and floated to his own room to check on Dream, Tommy sat where he was; his heart heart pounding in his ears. Wilbur returned a minute later, one hand intertwined with Dream's purple fingers, Dream looking like he'd just been told off. Tommy let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding, "Hey, Dream, don't scare me like that again", the blonde said, watching as the ghost awkwardly stared at the floor, "Aw nevermind,, you're like a big baby Dream, I can't stay mad at you, come over here so we can keep a better eye on you" patting the bed next to him, Tommy waited for Dream to float over, which he did. "Am I like a baby, Tommy?"

Neither brother expected Dream's question, however it did start a debate among them. According to what Dream remembered after waking up, he had been a ghost for about three days. By that logic Tommy declared him the youngest, however Wilbur quickly objected, "no- no, no! That would make me younger than you Tommy and I'm definitely not", not being able to argue with that the two of them launched back into debate while Dream floated aimlessly around the room, trying to pick up things as the continued to phase through his hands. They didn't realise how loud their argument was getting until they heard a knock at the door, both brothers quickly shut up, Tommy looked around for Dream, who was already shutting the closet door, Wilbur moved to open the door both waited until the blond ghost had silently hidden himself before the door to the bedroom opened. There stood Phil, holding a red book in his hands and wearing a stern look on his face.

"Hey Big man.." Tommy awkwardly greeted, looking at his father standing in the doorway. Phil dropped the act, he was never really mad at them, and replied to his youngest, "Hello Tommy, can you boys try keep it down? I'm about to head to bed aswell," He turned to Wilbur, "I hope I can rely on you to get him to sleep? He can stay up a little while longer but get him to bed at a decent hour, Wilbur". Wilbur nodded, "Of course, he's my baby brother of course," he added, giving Tommy a playful ruffle of his hair, Tommy seemed to almost growl at him. Phil just gave a quiet laugh, "I'll see you two in the morning, please try to keep quiet" as he turned to close the door, Tommy interrupted, "Actually Phil! Could you give an opinion..? Me and Wilbur were having a discussion-" "-a debate as you could say" Wilbur interjected, "-yeah a debate or whatever before you came in" Tommy finished. It must have caught Phil's attention because he turned back around, know leaning against the door frame, he spoke again, "Is that what all the noise was about?" Both boys nodded vigorously, Phil sighed but gave in, "Alright, tell me what it is then." And the two launched into explanation, talking so fast they sometimes spoke over each other; "So I told Wilbur because he is technically reborn he is younger than me-" "-but I'm still Wilbur so there is no way-" "-he doesn't want to admit it but-" "-I'm still Wilbur even if I'm a specter now!-" "-so I think that definitely makes me older than my little baby brother Wilby!-" "-Did you just call me Wilby?-" "-See he already likes the nickname!". Phil had no choice but to stand there and take it all in, after listening to everything, he asked for a silent minute to consider everything, "hmm.. you know what? Since you were reborn anew Wilbur, I will say that you are younger- however!" He said, stopping Tommy mid-arm-raise-of-celebration, "Tommy will always be my baby" he finished with a laugh, Wilbur joined in too, after seeing the look of disgust on Tommy's face, "I'm a big man, Phil!!" He announced, to his laughing father, who only replied, "Whatever you want to tell yourself, goodnight boys!" As Wilbur waved goodnight, he closed the door and walked out, hearing the faint click of Phil's bedroom door, Tommy finally celebrated, "Baby Wilby!!" 

It only took the boys three minutes to remember Dream was hiding in the closet, Tommy ended up opening the door, getting down low to duck under the jackets and seeing the ghostly boy sitting near a pair of Tommy's shoes, shivering from the freezing temperature he always seemed to be plagued with, "You can come out now Dream.." Tommy said, reaching out towards him, only to realise he was crying. Tommy froze in place, "..Dream...?" He whispered, "..You okay man?". Wilbur must have realised something was wrong, because Tommy saw him appear next to him through his peripheral, "Hi Tommy! Why are you still in the closet- oh.. Dream what's wrong?" Wilbur moved closer to Dream, obviously not affected by the cold the blond was giving off as he cried. Wilbur signalled to Tommy to move back to the bed, and Wilbur took a moment to stay with Dream in the back of Tommy's closet. Tommy climbed back into his bed and sat there awkwardly, boy did Dream cry alot.. he's burst into tears twice today as far as he knows, which is more than Tommy had ever seen him cry ever. Tommy sat on his bed for a minute before finally getting under the covers, a while after that Wilbur and Dream finally emerged from the closet, Dream now taking deep breaths and counting on his fingers, something Wilbur probably told him to do, his mask was off again too, held in Wilbur's left hand as his right squeezed Dream's hand. Tommy immediately sent an inquisitive look to Wilbur who just shook his head, "I think it's time you go to bed Tommy, let me light the lantern for you"without waiting for Tommy's obvious protest of not wanting a night light, Wilbur moved over to the lantern and began to strike the match. Dream sat at the end of Tommy's bed, trying to pick up a small plush bear with his hands, Tommy just watched in silence. Once the lantern was lit, Wilbur moved to tuck Tommy into bed, "Dream is staying here for tonight. Your room is alot brighter than mine, so I hope you don't mind" Tommy looked to the ghost who was now holding the small bear in his hand and wearing a watery smile, then he nodded to Wilbur, he would be fine as long as he didn't start crying again. Wilbur quietly thanked him and promised to explain in the morning. He then left the room after telling them both goodnight. 

Tommy waited a minute or two before sitting up in bed, looking for the ghost, "Dream..?" He whispered into the dimly lit room around him, "..where are you..?" Looking around, he spotted the ghost sitting near the lantern, knees up underneath his chin as he played with the small bear in his hands. Atleast he was getting used to making his hands solid, "Hey Dream, you doing alright?" He whispered slightly louder, Tommy was worried about the ghost, which was a weird thing considering how much they disliked each other.. but that was when Dream was alive.. he seemed so different now, so much more caring, maybe Tommy had changed too. For the better he hoped. Dream nodded, he wasn't wearing his mask, instead it sat next to the lantern, "I like your bear Tommy.. he's very cuddly, like a warm hug" he held up the bear as he floated towards Tommy, handing it to him, although Tommy handed it back, "No thanks big man, you can keep it". Dream sat down next to him on the bed, making the bear walk up and down while humming a happy tune. "You know Dream, we actually decided on if you were like a baby or not" at Tommy's words, the blonde ghost looked up, his dull greenish grey eyes looking at Tommy, "Well you see.. I had a talk with Phil but I didn't tell him about you! I used Wilbur instead, but Phil said that would make Wilbur a baby, so that means you are also a baby! So congratulations Dream!" Tommy announced, Dream only smiled, "I'm very tall for a baby Tommy, almost taller than you" Tommy gave an offended gasp, "I am atleast five inches taller for your information!" Which earned him a very quiet version of Dream's signature wheeze, which made Tommy smile. It had been a long time since he'd heard that noise, it was more peaceful now. Even if he was exiled from L'manburg, maybe he could go back now.. especially if Dream was.. dead, but that could only be discussed after he and Wilbur told Phil about the situation. For now, they had to get Dream to remember a little more than he did, considering he only really knew Wilbur and Tommy and they thought him to hide from Phil and Techno.. dammit, they had probably given themselves even more work than was necessary. As Tommy was lost in his thoughts, Dream had floated over to the clock on Tommy's wall. 

"Tommy!! It's almost midnight now! You need to sleep! Wilbur said you could get cranky otherwise!!" Dream rushed back over to the bed, trying to tuck Tommy back in, it was awkward since his hands kept phasing through, it was funny enough that Tommy quickly forgot about the fact Wilbur told Dream he gets cranky if he doesn't get enough sleep. "Okay, okay Dream! I'm sleeping now, I'm sleeping!" Tommy assured him, lying down to prove his point, "what are you going to do Dream?" He asked, as he pulled the covers up over himself, watching Dream float back to the lantern, the bear plush in hand, "I think I'll watch the stars.. they look really pretty.. goodnight Tommy" Dream said with a smile, turning to the window once he was sure Tommy had heard him. Tommy said his goodnight through a yawn, which thoroughly muffled it, and settled down to sleep. Settling into rest not long after he closed his eyes, atleast he knew someone would protect him from whatever went bump in the night. Dream watched as the stars twinkled in the sky outside Tommy's window, smiling brightly at the large moon that smiled back at him. It was a perfect and quiet night, Dream liked this alot more than the cold ice, snow and the lake he had stayed next to for the last few nights since he woke up.

Hopefully things would stay like this.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The brothers take the path through the forest to bring an old friend home. However things don't always go to plan, especially if Murphy's law has it's way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS CHAPTWR DELETED 8 TIMES.  
> IT'S REALLY BAD NOW AND I HATE IT.  
> SORRY FOR THE SMALL UPDATE I REALLY DONT HAVE TIME
> 
> ALSO I PLAN ON CHANGING DREAMS DESIGN AND IT WILL BE UP ON MY IG ACCOUNT SOON ENOUGH !! ILL ADD IT INTO THE STORY, BUT I WONT CHANGE THE OLD CHAPTERS. 
> 
> SORRY

The early morning sun, creeped through the windows of the house, poking directly into Tommy's eyes, who groaned and sat up. Yawning and stretching as the memories of yesterday floated back to him piece by piece. Tommy suddenly sat up bolt right and looked around his room, not spotting the blond ghost anywhere. "Dammit--" he muttered, his bare feet hitting the wooden floor as he jumped out of bed to do a more thorough search. He was halfway under the bed when a knock at the door startled him, hitting his head on the planks holding up his mattress he heard the door open and a laugh fill the quiet room. "What are you doing under there Tommy?" The mattress lowered slightly as someone sat on the bed, scrambling out from under the bed, he was met with the sight of Phil, "cleaning.." was the sorry excuse that escaped his mouth, apparently it was enough to make Phil laugh. "You need to clean yourself first," the older man said, taking the small balls of dust and lint off of Tommy, despite his son's protests, "Ranboo is visiting today, you know," Phil said nonchalantly, but it immediately caught the teens attention, "you can go meet him halfway and walk him back to the house like last time, if you'd like, Tommy. I know you are fed up of being cooped up inside, Wilbur definitely is he even asked to go with you this time". Tommy perked up at that, "really?" He questioned his father, who know stood in the doorway of his room, "really." was the answer supplied, "also you better get breakfast first, then if you wear your jacket and scarf you can go out." On that note, Phil left the room, leaving Tommy to excitedly to get ready, Ranboo was the only person that would give them news about The SMP and Tommy always enjoyed the half-enderman's visits, he was fun to talk to. Pulling on his snow boots, Tommy stomped down the stairs, ready to eat breakfast before heading out.

The kitchen was quiet, it was only Tommy and Phil for a while, Wilbur was already outside speaking to Friend and Techno was still sleeping. When both blonds heard a creak on the stairs, neither looked up, both knew that the final family member had woken up. Tommy was shovelling cereal into his mouth when Techno entered the kitchen, looking like his usual morning mess, he was offered a "goommomimg!!" by his youngest brother, who currently had his mouth full of cereal, Techno only offered back a grumbled response, he was too tired to try actually communicate. Phil didn't look up from his book, only greeting his eldest a good morning and reminding the younger blond to, "not speak with your mouth full". The kitchen returned to peace once more, the only noises coming from Tommy's spoon against the bowl, Phil turning the pages of his book and the quiet shhh of water as Techno filled the kettle. As Tommy finished shovelling another spoonful into his mouth, Techno opened a cabinet and took out a cup, one that Tommy knew would soon hold coffee.. his oldest brother was the least morning person he ever knew. As the kettle boiled, Techno looked out the window, "Who is Wilbur talking to?" His question broke the silence, and although it was unknown to the others into the question, it broke Tommy's inner peace- no way he had just seen Dream.. both blonds turned to look out the window, the younger going as far to walk over and almost press his face against the glass as he scanned their snowy front garden. There stood Wilbur, waving at them while Friend tried to eat a frozen flower that was poking through the snow, Tommy looked to Techno with what he hoped was a disappointed look and not one of relief, "It's just Wilbur and Friend.. no one else is out there", he went back to the table to finish off his cereal as Phil continued to wave to Wilbur from the window, Techno just grumbled, "I definitely saw someone..". Tommy finished chewing on his last spoonfull and swallowed the cereal, walking over to put his dishes in the sink, "maybe if you had your coffee, you'd see better, Techno" He supplied, already exiting the kitchen and walking to the coat rack, pulling on his large coat and tying the scarf Wilbur had made him around himself, "Phil, I'm going out now!" The aforementioned, poking his head out of the kitchen ro reply, "Alright! But stay on the path please, I don't want you guys getting lost and get Ranboo back safely please!" Tommy nodded as he closed the door behind him.

Jumping down the front stairs, Tommy's boots were met with soft snow, and he ran over to Wilbur, who now floated near the group of trees where they would walk through to meet Ranboo. The two of them began walking, talking amongst themselves until Tommy asked the burning question, "...Where is Dream..? You didn't lose him did you- I know Techno saw hi-" Wilbur smiled, "he went up ahead Tommy, we both knew about Techno seeing him, so I quickly sent him ahead of us! He'll meet us near the lake. So don't worry". The two of them quietly walked towards the lake, on the lookout for Dream as they did, Tommy quickly grew tired of the silence and started a conversation, "Say Wilbur, have you gotten around to helping Dream regain his memories?" Wilbur slowed down, his brother noticing the change moved to match the new pace, Wilbur let out a low sigh, "No Tommy.. but what's worse is I don't think he remembers as much as I did.. maybe nothing if I'm honest" The young blond took a moment to take that in, remember nothing? That sounded horrible.. even if Dream had been a bad person, he didn't deserve to forget everything-- whether good or bad. "I don't think it's too bad though, I struggled to remember mine Tommy, but I think Dream's memories just need to thaw out.. because although he knows who we are, he doesn't actually know us, things definitely seem to be coming back to him, albeit slowly.. he remembered something bad while hiding in the closet, he didn't tell me though-- he just told me it made him hate the dark." Wilbur explained, Tommy didn't understand it, but Wilbur probably knew more about being a ghost anyway, "That's weirdchamp" was his final response on the situation. "So when did Dream leave my room?" Tommy prompted a new conversation, having killed off the last one, "uhh... around five in the morning, he was upset because he thought he made you mad" His older brother answered, watching a small robin fly through the trees, not noticing the person he was speaking to had stopped walking, "What the fuck!? How was I angry at him?" Wilbur turned around, to see Tommy standing a short distance away, looking as if steam was about to pour out of his ears, he stifled a laugh as he tried to explain, "oh.. um well.. he heard you.." Wilbur looked to the blond, who was standing there with his arms crossed, waiting for an answer, "he thought your snoring was that growl you do when you are angry--" he trailed off, the situation was funny enough at the time, but Tommy had this thing where he refused to believe- "I DO NOT SNORE!"

\-------

"Wilbur!!" Dream floated towards the two of them a bright smile on his face, the mask had been hidden, Wilbur's choice to hopefully make him more difficult to recognise, especially now that he was missing all his old scars. "Hello Dream, sorry for keeping you waiting" Wilbur apologised, but Dream brushed it off, saying it was fine, Tommy however interjected the two ghosts conversation, " 'ey Dream, what's that in your hand?" He questioned, pointing at the hand hidden behind Dream, "..oh!! It's blue!" The ghost announced, showing the bundle of blue flowers he had collected while waiting for the two of them, "Wilbur said we were meeting someone and I thought they might be tired.. so I wanted to give them something nice- I remember Wilbur giving blue to people" there was an awkward silence, Tommy glared at Wilbur, a look that clearly said 'You didn't tell him?' However, the older ghost seemed more focused on something else, "Dream you remembered? Did you remember that just awhile ago? That's brilliant, well done on getting a memory back, I know it's very hard" with Dream beaming with pride, Tommy decided not to persecute Wilbur for not telling Dream.. although how they would explain this to Ranboo could be a whole different problem they did not need to deal with, unfortunately for him, Wilbur had made it so it was more likely to happen. "Tommy!! Did you hear me?" Snapping out of his thoughts Tommy turned to Dream, who floated just a little above him, Wilbur had gone ahead again, whether purposefully or not, he couldn't tell, "I said I'm sorry.. I remember doing mean things to you. . . and I honestly don't remember why I did them- but I remember not liking it when I did those things. I hope you can forgive me, but it's not mandatory that you do. Take your time to forgive me Tommy,, because with the way the memory felt.. it's probably not something you could forgive quickly." Then Dream turned and floated ahead, catching up to Wilbur quickly, leaving Tommy to process what he had just heard.. he knew Dream was a different person but.. he didn't expect to ever hear that Dream had felt bad while doing the things he had done, or even guilty about it. It raised so many questions, but one Tommy desperately wanted answered, Why did he do it then? As Tommy continued to lag behind the group, Wilbur suddenly yelled back to him, "Hurry up Tommy! We should be near the half way to meet Ranboo soon!!" Well that gave Tommy enough pep in his step to catch up with the other two in no time, practically skipping his was along the road. As the group passed the big fallen pine tree Tommy was almost hopping up and down with excitement, he couldn't wait to see Ranboo, couldn'twait to hear news about L'manburg and most importantly; news about Tubbo. It had only been about twenty minutes since the passed the fallen pine, when Wilbur pointed out the figure in the distance, there was Ranboo, slowly walking up the path, wearing the long blue scarf gifted to him by Wilbur on his third visit to them, he wore it every visit since. It made sense, considering how cold it was, Tommy started waving frantically as they continued walking towards their friend, hoping he would see them faster if he did so.

It worked, Ranboo's pace quickenedas he made his way towards them, arms opening wide as he braced for Tommy's usual tackle-hug hybrid where he would run and hug him. As he received Tommy's hug and greeted Wilbur with a smile and wave, he noticed another extra member to the welcoming party and froze. There just behind Wilbur and Tommy, stood what looked like a younger version of Dream, eyeing him with uncertainty.. but it couldn't be him- maybe the cold was getting to him. He believed that lie until this younger Dream was suddenly in front of him, trying to hand over a bunch of blue flowers. The absurdity of the situation was funny and made Ranboo hold back a laugh, until he sawthat they were floating off the ground and heard Wilbur call him Dream. Then everything became less funny and more like a nightmare. Tommy couldn't even cover his ears before Ranboo let out a loud scream of fear, "oh boy, do we have a lot of explaining to do before we reach the house" 

"You better start explaining quickly, Tommy"


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Murphy's law states that anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.
> 
> So to those who are left to it's wrath.. please have hope, if you do not..
> 
> Find it.

Snow crunched underneath Tommy's boots as he explained everything to the enderman hybrid, Wilbur speaking up every so often just to correct a mistake or explain something when Tommy couldn't, or didn't know what had happened or sometimes Wilbur just knew better. Throughout it all, they continued walking back towards the house, Dream floated a little while behind them, he kept getting distracted by the small robin's flying through the trees. Ranboo took it all in his stride, asking questions every so often, and looking back to make sure Dream was still with them. As they finally cleared the trees however, Ranboo's mood turned serious, "Tommy, I hope you understand I can't lie to Phil or Techno." The blond looked up, being met with the hybrid's red and green eyes, "If under any situation, they ask me about it. I will tell them, I'm not keeping secrets from them." Tommy turned to his brother, Wilbur could only shrug his shoulders, "That's okay Ranboo. We won't force you to lie!" They stood just infront of the house, almost in a small huddle, talking amongst themselves, "Phil and Techno won't find out" he promised, putting his hand over his heart. Tommy went to make a joke about there being no point in swearing on his heart when the group heard a noise from behind them, as they turned to see what it was, it felt as though the temperature had dropped. There stood Techno, no smiles or warm welcome on his face, instead he wore an expression Tommy had only seen once before, that of pure anger. 

"What will Phil and I not find out? Is it this?" He lifted his hand to reveal Dream's mask, even more cracked and broken than before, obviously caused by the tight grip Techno had on it, "or was it this?" He moved his other hand, reveal Dream, being held back by his hood.

"You didn't think you could keep this from me, did you?"

\-------

"Do you want to explain yourselves?" Phil asked, they were sitting in the kitchen, Tommy and Wilbur sitting in at the table, Techno leaned against the wall, not looking at them, Phil stood just infront of the table. His face was unreadable. Ranboo was sitting in the living room, he still had to give the news from L'manburg, even if the family was having an argument in the room over.. he probably felt extremely uncomfortable. Neither Tommy or Wilbur spoke, because well.. what could they say- they knew they would probably get in trouble yet they did it. Phil put his hands to his temples, rubbing them with thought, "listen.. I'm not angry, I'm just disappointed, but if you continue to act on this way and not tell us then I will become angry. This is serious, we can't brush over something like this, don't you two understand?". Tommy could only look at the floor, knowing Phil was disappointed was somehow worse than him being mad, he couldn't ever look his father in the eyes, let alone tell him. Wilbur muttered something, something only Tommy could hear, "Techno locked him in the basement.." his breath caught in his throat, Dream hated the dark, he was taking most of the punishment out of all of this. Phil speaking again, woke Tommy from his thoughts, "I'm going to speak to Ranboo, then Techno will walk him back. You two are not to move from here until I return, that's plenty of time for you to sort out your story. Without lies." With a stone cold glare, Phil left the kitchen. Techno silently followed after him, leaving the two brothers sitting at the table in silence. "I never thought I'd see Phil like this.. we've messed up Tommy" the room lapsed into silence, until the blond broke it one last time, "yeah.. so we need to fix it."

\--------

It took an hour, but eventually they heard the front door open, heard Ranboo say a rather loud goodbye, to which Techno grumbled in response, Wilbur and Tommy silently said their own goodbye back, who knew if they'd ever be allowed outside the house again. As the door shut, footsteps were heard out in the hall, and then there was Phil, pulling up a chair to the table and sitting down, "Right. I want the full story, so one of you should start telling me it" he looked two his two sons, who shared a look and Tommy even gave an audible gulp. It was silent in the kitchen, too silent, one that was uncomfortable and itched away at your nerves, one that made Tommy feel as though hundreds of people were looking at him, waiting for him to grab the microphone and speak, it gnawed away at him until he could take it no longer. "When me and Wilbur left the house yesterday to go make snow men.. more happened than we actually told you about.." he spoke up, his voice barely more than a whisper, but it seemed so loud in the room, two pairs of eyes know watched him and he felt his forehead growing damp. It was like an interrogation. "When Wilbur went inside to get clothes, I went to go find sticks for arms.. an- and I heard a noise, so I went to check it out. It didn't sound like any of the animals from around here.. so I was curious, and it only took a minute to get to the lake, which is where I found him, next to a hole in the ice, his back was to me but the way he cried his eyes out made me worry someone had fallen into the lake so I called out." He took a shuddering breath, the room felt cold, as if he was back outside in the snow. Tommy wrapped his arms around himself, then continued, he couldn't rely on anyone else to tell this tale, Wilbur hadn't been there yet and the only other witness was locked in the darkness downstairs. "He turned towards me, and I knew it was him but- he looked so much younger.. sure most of the scars he had were gone and he was wearing different clothes but I knew deep down it was him. I was just scared, why was he here? Why was he crying... so I- I just brushed it off as my imagination, that was until he floated towards me and started following me" Tommy felt his voice falter, however Wilbur was now able to take over, and sensing his younger brothers hesitation, he did just that, "I later found Tommy as he ran back around from the trees, Dream following just behind. We would have probably left him there if it hadn't started to snow.. it was just incase he melted- I had an idea, that we would hide him in the pile of clothes to get him out of the snow and then bring him back out once it was over.. but he was so helpless and barely remembered a thing. I don't think either of us had the heart to leave him alone." Tommy let out a breath he hadn't known he had been holding, he swore he saw it cloud infront of him, but he was probably just imagining that, along with the cold. He was thankful that all eyes were off him as Wilbur explained the rest of yesterday's and today's events with Dream.

It wasn't until he had heard everything, that Phil finally spoke, "Why didn't you tell us. I understand both of you have hearts too big for this world, but this.." Tommy quickly rushed in with an answer, "We were going to tell you! We just had to get Dream used to everything, he could barely hold a bear in his hands-" His father interrupted him, "Tommy! You are treating him like some animal you and Wilbur had to train, you need to realise that Dream is the most powerful person in The SMP. Yet here he is, hidden in the back of your closet, do you realise how bad it could be if anyone found this out? You could he blamed for his death, Tommy!" Tommy looked away in embarrassment, arms still wrapped around him, he rubbed them against his sides, trying to ignore the goosebumps rising on them.. why was it so cold. "Ranboo told us that he had a fight with George and Sapnap after George was dethroned" Phil spoke, both of his sons looked up in unison and he answered their unspoken question, "Eret is king again, but apparently Dream hasn't been seen since then. Which was about a week or two ago. No one has issued a search yet, meaning that very few people know why he left, and those who do are probably still mad. However, that doesn't mean we hide the fact Dream is dead. We can't let this go unknown by the others." Both knew Phil was right, but neither were prepared for what he said next, "Which is why we have to go their ourselves and break the news, bringing Dream with us." "But he doesn't remember anything!" Tommy argued, "We can't even bring a body-" Phil's look was enough to shut him down, "We can retrieve his body from the lake, it isn't deep Tommy, remember? We will just have to be careful. However how we will break the news is another problem" standing up, Phil pushed his chair back into it's original place, "I'm glad you owned up to what you did, but you did dig us all into a deep hole, you better be prepared to help us get out of it-" The older man stopped in his tracks, looking at the ground, both boys craned their necks to look, spotting ice on the kitchen floor, creeping up from underneath the floorboards.

It escaped Wilbur's mouth before Tommy could even process what he was seeing, "It's the basement!" All three of them quickly exited the kitchen, seeing small patches of ice sneak up through the floorboards and spill onto the floors or crawl up the walls of the house. Phil stopped as the got closer to the door of the basement stairs, "please be careful, I don't need you slipping on the ice, Tommy" as he tried to open the door they quickly realized it wouldn't budge, with both Tommy and Phil pulling at the handle and no luck, Wilbur suggested an idea that would seem comical if it was any other situation, "Try a running start and barrel it down, if that doesn't work there is probably an axe somewhere.." they went with the first option, Phil and Tommy taking turns to run at the door and hit it with the shoulder, eventually it was broken by Phil on his sixth attempt. The house was now freezing and it was easy to see their breath as they moved down the completely frozen steps of the basement, there was no use holding the rail as it was completely frozen over. As the trio arrived on the bottom step of the basement, they were met with what must have been a temperature in the negatives, with their eyes slowly adjusting to the dark, they saw the small figure of the ghost, curled in on himself. The ghost must have been crying, because his shoulders shook, however Tommy couldn't tell, due to the swirling snow storm that encompassed the young ghost and soon enough them.

The last thing he saw was white as something cold hit against his face, and Wilbur let out a loud gasp.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ice is powerful, dangerous and strange..
> 
> ..yet this is not something anyone could possibly compete against.

Techno watched as Ranboo rowed his small boat back to L'manburg, it was growing cold and he would definitely rather be at home, despite the argument that was probably raging.. especially with Tommy's stubbornness. Once Ranboo was out of sight, he turned and began walking backwards, it was really cold actually, the kind of temperature that made it's way into your bones. Techno pulled his cloak around him and continued walking back towards the house, he would have taken his time to make sure he would avoid the argument altogether, but the dark clouds that seemed to be swirling in the sky meant a storm and he didn't want to be caught in that. He trudged through the snow, slipping through the trees to take a shortcut around the lake, snow was now falling and the wind howled, whipping his hair around as he walked. Techno listened as trees creaked and watched as the birds flew from tree to tree, trying to escape the ever growing strength of the storm. As Techno reached the lake, the snow fall grew heavier, almost up to his knees, he pushed away the thoughts of confusion, the storm hadn't suddenly become more powerful, he was obviously just walking further into it. This storm was no different from the others, it wasn't an anomaly, Techno had lived here long enough to endure the snow storms this land offered. The lake was now in view, the sky was completely covered by dark clouds, shadows made the shapes of nightmares around the forest, the snow came down in clumps rather than snowflakes, the wind screamed so that the fabled banshee would cower in fear. However one thing made the retired warrior stop in his tracks. That thing was the lake, which lay untouched despite the piles of snow and ice surrounding it's banks. A crack in the ice that showed someone had fallen in, Techno shivered as he neared the bank of the lake, ignoring how the snow stuck to his pants. The hole in the ice was pitch black, no snow lay on it's surface, it was like a void. Something that would swallow you whole and make sure you were never seen again. But that isn't what scared Techno... no, what scared him is something he saw everyday.

The foot prints leading out of the hole in the lake, puddles of water that still hadn't frozen over and the path that someone had recently made in the snow, that was slowly being covered by the ever growing heavier storm. Someone had been in the lakes water recently... but what had they wanted-

Techno heard a loud crack over the roaring wind and turned to see a large pine tree falling to the brute force of the wind. Techno ran around the lake as the tree tumbled towards the ground, he continued running through the trees towards the house. He needed to be inside, it was too dangerous to take any longer to get there in this storm. Yet when he reached the house, he was met with a sight he could never be prepared for... the house still stood, despite how it seemed to shake in the wind, but the windows had been blown out and deep dark clouds poured out from inside. The storm had come from inside the house. Where his family where.. where Phil, Tommy and Wilbur where. The house was covered with icicles and the rooms were filling with snow as Techno watched helpless. Scared, terrified by the sight like a small child. That was until he heard a flash of colour past one of the windows.. they must still be in there and Techno would have to help them. With new found strength, he sprinted towards the house, clambering up the front steps and throwing open the front door. He was faced with stronger winds than the ones he had faced outside, yet he stood his ground, forcing his way through the wind and through the snow filled house. He watched as ice crept up the walls and icicles hung from the ceiling.. he never should have left them.. if this much had happened in the hour and a half it took him to watch Ranboo- "...Techno.." his head snapped in the direction of the noise, where he saw Wilbur on the ice covered stairs, shivering and- and no, no no no no no- "Wilbur!" He called out, moving as quickly as he could towards the ghost, fighting the harsh winds, "You're melting Wilbur, come here quickly.." he held his cloak open, hoping.. and Wilbur moved, slowly ducking underneath the cloak and hiding from the snow underneath it.

"Phil is trying to exit the basement.. I got out before them and I could hear him knocking on the door but- I can't open it.." Wilbur explained, he sounded tired, weak from enduring the snowfall. Techno didn't wait and ask questions, there was no answer for any of this, no answer for the storm outside, no answer for why it seemed to be erupting from the house. Techno searched for his axe through the snow, finally feeling the handle he grabbed it. Leaving Wilbur with his cloak he moved to the basement door where he heard muffled noise coming from behind it, "Phil? Tommy? I'm going to break down the door- move back and out of the way" then he waited, not too long, but hopefully enough that he would be out of the way. Then he raised the axe and swung at the door, once, twice, watching it splinter under every strike until it broke and he could see his father standing there, holding Tommy in his arms, who appeared to be knocked out. Sticking an arm through the door, he reached out to Phil, who still blinking from the sudden light, accepted it and managed to step out from the basement. Techno didn't wait for anyone to explain, "I don't want to know what happened," he said as Phil opened his mouth to say something, "I don't care about that ghost. We have more pressing matters, like getting away from this house and out of the storm. Then you can tell me what you like later, you guys come first." With that he turned and began leading the group out of the house and into the forest, back the way he had brought Ranboo, when all had been calm. They would wait out the storm out near the docks, if it was still calm there. Guiding Wilbur infront of him, with Phil carrying Tommy in his arms behind him, the small family walked away from there house and into the trees. 

None of them noticing the tall figure watching them from the trees, no one noticed the storm dying down in the house. They didn't realise one of the boats that was usually in the dock was missing, untied from it's rope and floating away in silence. They didn't see the figure of a young teen climb the steps of their abandoned house and clutch tighter to the thin clothes that let in all cold. 

As the family settled down at the docks to wait out the storm, they didn't realise how many more storms were on their way.

\----------

Manburg and the lands around it had grown immensely in the time of peace they had been offered. Eret still reigned as king and all those under his rule accepted the fact. L'manburg was treated as an equal, people from both countries mixed easily with one another and the hard border had been taken down, replaced with roads, lamps and decorations. He should have been happy, he knew that things were way better now, especially without the constant wars. Yet he still was always in a constant mood, never straying too far from his house, because if he was honest, he was still missing something. Sapnap stood outside the house he shared with George, it was growing late and he decided to go outside for once, even if it was to just watch the sun set from the front door. He wasn't angry anymore, sure he had been at the time, but he definitely wasn't anymore. It all felt weird, the person he had fought with that day had not felt like the Dream he had known for so long. As the days without Dream dragged by, he had found himself slowly wondering how long his friend had been acting strange. The sad part was, he couldn't tell when it started. As the darkness grew and the sun sank in the sky, he heard the door open behind him and quiet footsteps that moved through the grass towards him. Sapnap tried to look more relaxed as a boy with goggles sat next to him, "Watching the sun set, Sapnap? Didn't take you as the type to do that" Despite what George said, neither boy made a move to go back inside, instead sitting together in comfortable silence as the sky turned an array of colours. The moment didn't need to be ruined by asking questions, so they lay to the side, tucked away for later.

The sky was turning a deep blue when George went to make a move to go back inside, "Come on, it's going to get cold out here soon". Sapnap took a while to move, slowly standing up and walking towards the older boy. The two of them about to head back inside when they heard someone yelling towards the sound by pure instinct they saw Quakitiy running towards them, yelling what sounded like pure nonsense and waving his arms like a madman. They waited outside the house as he ran, neither really wanting to move, just incase this was a practical joke. Quackitiy finally came to a stop just infront of the door, resting his hands on his knees as he caught his breath, lungs heaving from the sprint. "You guys gotta come with me, Karl says he saw something you won't believe. He's near the wheat farm come on!" with that he turned on his heel, leaving the other members of El Rapids standing in the doorway, until Sapnap broke out of his trance and started running after Quackity. George moved to look the door, his hands fumbling with the keys and cursing slightly as he struggled to get them in, giving up after the third attempt he started sprinting after the other two, yelling at them to slow down so he could catch up. As the ran they passed many of the other people who populated The SMP many of them cheerfully greeting them, Bad actually dropping what he was doing and running with them, "I'm glad you two are out of the house, but where are we running too.??" Neither Sapnap or Quackity answered, so George did instead, "Quackity.. said Karl saw something.. that we needed to know about.." he explained between breaths, it had been a while since he'd been running for this long.. he normally did this while chasing Dream.

When they reached the wheat field, Karl stood there, surrounding by wheat that he had obviously been harvesting, seeds scattered around him the packet on the ground. He must have dropped it in shock. The four of them gathered around him, Quakity putting his arm around his shoulder, while Sapnap and Bad gathered up what he had dropped. George however was the one to ask the question, "What did you see?" He felt as though someone was squeezing his lungs, the anticipation of waiting for the answer was getting to him and he needed to know what had happened. Karl looked at the farm, "I was gathering wheat out there when I heard a noise.. so I looked up to see if someone else was gathering wheat.. but no one was there." He swallowed, he looked scared, everyone stood in silence, what in the world had he seen? "I heard the noise again so this time I called out, the sun was setting and the lights weren't on yet so it was kind of dark and I didn't have any torches on me but.. I saw someone in a black cloak. Just standing in the middle of the farm.. I didn't recognize them as anyone who lived around here so I assumed someone new had joined and went over to greet them.. they pulled out a weapon when I got close and shouted something- before just vanishing-". They all looked at eachother, "Who just pulls a weapon on so--" Sapnap was cut off by Bad, "What did they say, Karl?" Karl shook his head, "it just sounded like gibberish.. but I know one thing for sure.." when George prompted him to continue, Karl took a shuddering breath.

"They had Dream's axe"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick edit ‼‼ the designs for this au will be up on my insta soon :)!! So I though I'd drop the name here, since I'm not the best at describing things,,
> 
> I plan to have either the Sbi family's or Dream's designs up by atleast next week so keep an eye out ‼‼


	7. A change

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> But as the quiet boy sang a song to cheer himself up, the darkness hissed in anger..
> 
> ..and as the flames quietly made their way across the boys skin, burning and devouring, the darkness was finally quiet, smiling with glee..
> 
> ..and the boy? Oh how the boy screamed..

Tommy slowly sat up and opened his eyes, groaning as he did so, whatever way he had fallen asleep had left him with a numb left arm and a pain in his back. It took him a minute or two to get his eyes completely open, rubbing away the last of the sleepiness with his hands and stifling a rather large yawn that tried to escape. Grumbling to himself about the pain his back was being treated with, he heard a quiet shuffling behind him, when he turned to look however, it still seemed to be dark. ..What time was it? As the shuffling got closer, so did a small light, and soon Tommy was able to make out the face of his ghostly brother. A bright smile growing on his face as he realised Tommy was actually awake, "Hello Tommy..! You aren't too cold are you?" He held a small lantern in one hand, it was cracked and seemed rusty, the other hand held a thin looking blanket. The younger looked around in confusion, they definitely weren't in the house, rather what seemed to have been a small and quickly built base, he also noticed something else, "Wilbur.. are you wearing Techno's cloak-- where is Techno and Phil? Are they okay, Wilbur? Where are we!?" Wilbur set down the lantern as he floated to his little brother's side, pulling him into a hug to try calm him, "it's okay Tommy.. they just left a little while ago, we are down by the docks.. you must have hit your head hard or maybe it's just that your memories are still sleepy.." Tommy leaned into the hug, Wilbur always gave the best ones and he had missed them. His brother sat next to him, hugging him for as long as he needed, Tommy didn't know how much time had passed when he finally remembered, "Wilbur.. where is Dream?"

\---------

Manburg was peaceful, as were its neighbouring countries. No wars or fights had broken out in at least a month, and the people living there gratefully accepted the era of peace.

It had been peaceful for too long. It would not stay any longer.

He watched, almost entranced by the flame sitting on the end of the match, moving it's way down the wood towards his gloved hand. As the flames began to lick his fingers, covering his hand, he smiled at the warmth. 

And threw the match.

The community house stood in front of him, a tall building in the middle of a lake. The sky was dark and other than the moon there wasn't much light in the area.

That would change soon.

The flames were greedy, eating as much of the house as it could touch, engulfing the building, dancing up the stairs and reaching the second floor. Pouring black smoke and ash out the windows, the flames laughed as the house groaned and creaked, falling to the sheer power of the fire. Sparks flew from the building, jumping to the winds in hopes of catching another victim to turn to ashes. He smiled, the once sturdy house crying out for help as the second floor collapsed. A spark floated towards him, landing on his cloak and spreading across it, he let it burn for a second, before stomping it out. With a taste of satisfaction in his mouth, they turned and walked away from the destruction, listening to branches snap as trees caught fire.

It was the calm before the storm.

\-------

Techno stood in the ruined house, sure the windows could easily be fixed and nothing else was broken other than the door he had axed down, but there certainly was a lot of water. "Phil? If you don't find anything up there, I'll be searching the basement!" He yelled up the stairs, the aforementioned didn't appear but did yell back a quick "Alright!". As he walked through the melted ice and snow towards the basement, he ignored how the slush stuck to his clothing, whatever the storm had been, it had disappeared almost as quickly as it had appeared. "Not without leaving casualties.." he grumbled, thinking of his two brothers sitting back at the thrown together base down at the docks. He walked down the steps to the basement ignoring the icicles that dropped water onto him as he walked beneath them, halfway down the steps into the darkness, he was met with a splash as he put his foot down and another splash on the next step. Swearing to himself under his breath, he moved back up the steps, only to be met with Phil at the door, the older man lighting a lantern. 

"It's flooded" he stated roughly, making his father look up, his expression unreadable. "By how much?" He questioned, finally getting the flame to stay, and walking down to see for himself, Techno followed him, " 'bout halfway." As the lantern's small flame lit up the staircase, the two of them walked down the staircase, stopping when they reached the steps the splashes had originally started at. Four steps down from the water sat quietly, swallowing up any light and sound, yet there on the surface floated one item.

A broken mask.

Phil reached out towards it, plucking it from the water, it seemed to break further under his touch, the water having damaged the mask. He looked to Techno, seemingly having to drag his eyes from the mask in his hand, "We need to check the lake."

\------

It was gone.

"How?!" Phil shouted, Techno winced, his father seemed so distressed, it was unusual for him to act like this. It was around midday at this point, and they currently stood on the icy banks of the lake, "We left his ghost behind and he was erased! That would have been bad enough, if we had a body to bring back- but now the body is gone too? I've messed up.." The older man sat down on an overturned tree near the lake, head in his hands, "I shouldn't have left him down there, but I was so angry at the time- we shouldn't keep that kind of thing from each other. Not as a family, now because of me, we are done for" Techno didn't have anything to say, he just slumped down on the log next to his father, leaving the mask to slide down the wood and land in the snow. "Not everything is done for, we can work together to sort this out. I promise to you, besides, let's not think of the worst.. I'm sure Tommy and Wilbur will help us no matter what" He decided not to mention the footsteps he had seen that night. As he and Phil walked back to the docks, he tried to block it out, pretend he was seeing things. Act as everything was normal, greet Wilbur and Tommy cheerfully, he left Phil to fuss over his youngest as he and Wilbur walked down further towards the dock, looking out to the horizon. Everything would be okay...he believed that lie. That was until Wilbur pointed at the tied up boat that sat, bobbing in the water next to them.

"Wasn't there two boats there..?"

\------

Tommy was definitely known for his stubbornness, and could easily get under people's skin with his repetitive questions until he got his way. Today was no different, except the young teen seemed to be trying extra hard to be annoying. "Come on- why won't you tell me about why-" Techno cut him off, finally having enough, "Tommy. Stop talking, please!!" They were currently walking through the trees, searching for any sign of the ghostly boy. It hadn't taken long for Tommy to pry the information out of Phil, which he had then demanded that they have a search just in case he was still around. Wilbur had dibs on going with Phil, which is why Techno was stuck with the youngest. Both Wilbur and Techno had crossed off the idea of him stealing a boat, especially since Wilbur had been awake all night he definitely would have heard something. Delivering this knowledge to Phil while Tommy was out of earshot was difficult, but they managed it. 

Techno knew what that could mean.. especially after the footprints at the lake and the body disappearing.. but he decided not to let any of the others know.

Everyone had enough to deal with as it was.

\-------

Wilbur was floating a little higher than he usually would, they had decided that Phil's wings would probably scare Dream off if he heard them, which led to Wilbur silently floating a meter or two off the ground, just ahead of Phil, who looked from the ground. As Wilbur neared the edge of the forest, he spotted a small robin flying through the trees. He watched it fly, hoping that maybe the younger ghost would be following after it.. . He moved downwards, waiting for Phil to catch up, "any signs..?" The older man could only shake his head, "not yet. He could be gone, Wilb-" Wilbur shook his head, "I don't think he would be, he doesn't seem like the type to let himself di- ...die twice" Phil laughed at that, shaking his head, "you are so right, Wilbur. Let's keep looking" the two of them kept walking through the trees together, keeping their eyes on the look out for their ghostly friend.

The sun was lowering in the sky, it was around four o'clock by the time they returned to the docks, Techno and Tommy hadn't returned, so Phil began working on a fire, while Wilbur picked through whatever food had been salvaged from the house earlier. Most of it had been frozen or was soaked through, but they had gotten enough that they should be okay for awhile. Once Wilbur had found what his father had asked him to find, he floated back towards Phil, who was now throwing another couple of sticks into the small fire under the furnace. Handing the beef to Phil, he moved back over to the trees, where he soon heard his very loud younger brother talking, "You are just jealous that I get all the ladies, Techno!" Wilbur stifled a laugh, hearing the aforementioned grumble something about Wilbur, "Yeah okay Techno, and considering you two are twins you definitely don't share his looks" Tommy teased, soon hearing the boy's shrill shriek and Wilbur spotted him sprint past, Techno following close behind. Wilbur laughed and followed the two of them back to the docks.

\--------

He stood above the ashes of the community house, holding back a wave of emotions that threatened to crash against the dam he had forced into place. The boy looked around the area, at the damage that had been done overnight. It had been set alight, and the fire had been extinguished early into the morning, when someone had noticed the black smoke and ran towards it. George pushed past the small wall that had been made in a feeble attempt to keep people out of the ruins. Someone had mentioned it earlier in passing conversation, saying how it would have to be rebuilt and that the few trees which had also been caught alight would need to be replanting. George had immediately gone to see for himself, to see if the house was truly gone… and it was.

It was silly, he knew it was.

They could easily rebuild it, but he had built it with Sapnap.. and Dream. He couldn't rebuild the memories the house had held with it. He couldn't just wave his hand and have all of it return to normal, nothing had been normal since Dream ran away. It wasn't as fun when you were missing one of your closest friends. Maybe he should tell Sapnap about the house, he would probably help him rebuild it and they could make new memories. Then it would be just like it used to be.

Except of course.. it would be without Dream


	8. The oddity brought death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Sing us a song!!" The darkness jeered at the boy..
> 
> ...the boy sat in silence, next to the scorched bones on the ground..
> 
> ..he watched as the darkness took them, hiding them in the shadows..
> 
> .. .. as what was his, became that of the darkness..
> 
> ..and the boy left the darkness to take it, as he could not use it anymore.

It had been thirty seven hours since Tommy had last seen Dream. Phil and Techno had visited the house just yesterday, yet had caught no sight of his ghostly friend. They had also searched the surrounding forest and near the docks, yet found nothing. In the early hours of the morning, he had taken the lantern and left the small house they had built as a replacement. As the stars shone above his head and the snow crunched underneath his feet, Tommy walked through the snow biome, squinting through the darkness in the hopes of spotting the ghostly boy.

As the first light of day began to shine through the trees, the boy caught sight of something blue just ahead. Ignoring the cold and how his breath fogged up in front of his face, Tommy began running after it, totally re-energised by the small sighting of colour in the constant white, brown and green. The lantern clutched tightly in his hand swung from side to side as he ran, his shoes occasionally sliding on ice as he moved. Following the small colour of blue through the trees and eventually into the clearing, where there was a small patch of snowdrops and in the middle.. 

There was Dream.

"Dream..?" Tommy called out, just to make sure it was in fact him. When the blue cloaked figure turned their head in his direction, he shrieked with glee, "It is you! Oi you dickhead why did you disappear?!" The blond was already running towards the ghost, even as he threw insults at him, the ghost smiling shakily and opening his arms to accept the incoming hug-tackle mix that Tommy was presenting him with. Tommy didn't phase through, meaning he sent both of them flying into the snow, making the two of them laugh. 

"Why did you disappear?" Tommy asked, they were still sitting in the snow, watching the sun rise through the trees sharing Dream's blue cloak to stay warm. The other boy shrugged his shoulders, making a face as he tried to think of an answer. Tommy watched him carefully, he looked younger now, if he thought about it, maybe around his early tweens, however his blue/almost purple fingers and toes remained the same, as well as his warm clothes and constantly red nose. His eyes were still the same old eyes, but they looked so much kinder now and sweeter. His left eye a bright emerald green, while his right eye was a lighter green, almost yellow. A small scar running over it and reaching his eyebrow, from a fight that Tommy didn't know about. Dream began talking, snapping the blond out of his thoughts, "... if I'm honest.. I didn't remember you.. all my memories were really fuzzy, but I can remember you now!" He announced, a smile on his face. Tommy gave a smile back, if Dream had forgotten again, this whole helping him remember thing might be more difficult than first expected. "Tommy..?" He looked up, seeing the ghost looking back at him, "you should go back, shouldn't you? Will your family not realise you are missing?" Tommy stood up, brushing the snow off his pants, "you are coming back aswell right?" He questioned, crossing his arms, as his ghostly companion became more nervous under his watch. "I thought.. they you know..?? Hated me.."

"Well let me prove you wrong, big man"

\-------

The walk back to the docks was a pleasant one, Tommy almost skipped back, talking about having his pep back in his step. Dream floated next to him, laughing at his jokes and pointing out the small birds the flew through the trees around them. Once they arrived back at the docks, they were greeted with a frantic Wilbur, "Tommy!!" He yelled, zooming towards them, and grabbing his brother by his shoulder's not even noticing Dream's presence, "I've been worried sick, you are so lucky Phil and Techno haven't woken up yet! How could I explain to them where you were, I didn't even know! Oh I'm so glad you are safe!" Tommy gave an awkward smile and watched as Dream tried to hold in a laugh from behind his older brother. "I'm okay Wilbur! Better than okay actually, because look at this fucker I found!" Tommy pushed Wilbur off of him, spinning him around so he could see Dream, who awkwardly waved back at them. Wilbur let his jaw drop. Immediately moving to give the younger ghost a hug, as Tommy laughed behind the two of them.

As the boys waited for Phil and Techno to wake, Dream helped Wilbur make Tommy breakfast, not without sticking his whole hand in the furnace and scaring the life out of both brothers, who later laughed it off once remembering Dream was infact.. Dead. As Tommy ate his bread at the end of the docks, Wilbur sitting next to him as Dream chased a small Robin around, he smiled. Things were definitely going to get better, no doubt about it. As Dream floated under a tree and knocked a pile of snow onto himself, causing Tommy to almost choke on his breakfast and needing Wilbur to thump his fist on his back, Tommy knew things would only get better from here on out. 

\-------

Things were certainly not getting better.

As if the community house being burnt to the ground wasn't enough, someone kept lighting fires around The SMP, however not a single one grew to the size of the fire that had eaten away at the community house. People started carrying sand and water on them, it even became a regular sight to see chests of sand in buildings that weren't near water sources. There was no pattern to the fires, due to how many places had been targetted, which in the past thirty eight hours, there had been ten different attacks. The list of suspects couldn't be narrowed down, which left everyone on edge, there was never a sign of which building was going to be lit next.

Ranboo wiped the sweat of his forehead, rolling up the sleeves of his suit as he lifted another block of bricks up the scaffolding to hand to George or Sapnap, depending on whoever was closer. Quakitiy moved around near him, trying to build a sturdier foundation on the house, since it had began sagging into the water below. The community house was looking better than the pile of ashes and scorched building materials it had been when they first arrived, but many people had showed up throughout the building progress and they were moving alot faster than they would have without help. However, it was currently just the four of them. "Quakitiy? Do you need help over there?" Ranboo asked, his red and green eyes flicking over to where the aforementioned waded in the water, as he handed yet another pile of bricks up the scaffolding, this time directly into Sapnap's hands. Quakity shook his head, "nah man, it's fine. I got this covered, however if I need you? I'll let you know" the enderman hybrid nodded, climbing up the scaffolding to see how George and Sapnap were getting on, handing them both a bottle of water when he reached their level, he sat down next to them, before starting up a conversation. "Do you guys have any clues on the attacks?" Both shook their heads staying silent, Ranboo continued the conversation alone, answering himself out loud, "I don't think it would be anyone on The SMP, because everything was really peaceful up until then. No one seemed particularly bored of the peace- but I couldn't believe someone would actually do this because they ar- what was that?"

Both boys looked up, George had been blocking out Ranboo's rambling, but the last question caught his attention, "What did you see?" He scooted towards the younger, careful not to knock anything off the scaffolding. "There was- nah nevermind.." Ranboo tried to brush it off, but it was obvious something was bothering him. Neither boy could get another word out of him about it, until Quakity climbed up the scaffolding, "hey guys! I swear I just saw that someone watching us from behind a tree and they wouldn't even come help when I waved them over! Can you believe that?" He yelled out, obviously hoping the person would hear and walk over to help in embarrassment. "I'm stuck in the water, soaked!" To emphasize his pointed he stood up and shook his left leg, effectively soaking George as he did so, "and they didn't even so much as walk over and say hello!" At this point however, Sapnap was no longer curious about the mystery watcher, instead he was laughing at the now shopping wet boy sitting next to him. Ranboo seemed to be stifling a laugh, and once Quakity realised what had happened, he burst out laughing aswell. It didn't take very long for George to stop being mad and start laughing aswell, telling Quakity he would throw him in the lake if he did that again, but only through fits of laughter.

The boys continued laughing on top of the scaffolding, none of them noticing a very worried looking sheep hybrid walk towards the house, a small photo clutched in their hands. Determined to try get answers, about the boy she had cared for, for so long.

\-----

In the distance, a cloaked figure watched from behind the trees, scowling at the boys as they rebuilt what he had destroyed. However, he didn't dwell on it for too long, he already had them cowering in fear and carrying around supplies to stop fires. All he had to do was set move to the next phase of his plan, the one the boy couldn't succeed in doing for him. Making them turn against each other, not just nation against nation, but person against person. To be on edge at all times, sacred of everyone and everything around you.. that was a true way to break people, to be in control.

Even if he had failed the first time, he couldn't fail again, because the silence showed him he was winning, finally taking control over everything. Even if those on The SMP didn't know it.. there was a large storm brewing quietly, when it's winds toppled buildings and destroyed all in it's path, then they would realise how sacred they were. That's how the darkness wins, because the unknown is more feared than anything you could possibly know is going to happen.


	9. Mother's nature

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For once the darkness was gone..
> 
> ..the boy wasn't alone, he was with a bright shinging light, who smiled sweetly at him..
> 
> ..the light hugged the boy and kept him safe.
> 
> The boy was younger. The darkness had not yet found him.

"There is no other way to go about it.. any chance you can let him know before we go ahead with the plan?" The blond nodded, running to grab their communicator.

\----

"...are you sure you haven't seen him, I know you two were close friends with him" they nodded awkwardly, she didn't seem convinced, "when was the last time you saw him at the very least? Please.. I just need to know he is alright" Puffy stood just infront of the half built community house, George and Sapnap stood infront of her, having been called down off the scaffolding. It was around midday, the sun was brighter than usual, causing them to become sticky with sweat. Ranboo and Quakity waded through the water, building the foundation together, while staying cool in the lake. Puffy had only been here for a few minutes at most, but it felt like the interrogation had been going for too long and it was now becoming uncomfortable for George. "The last time I saw him was almost three weeks ago?? I'm sorry, Puffy, if I knew more I would tell you" Sapnap told the sheep hybrid, she nodded solemnly, thanking them quietly before turning and walking away. George watched her leave, not even realising that he was standing alone until Quakity called out to him, "George! Come help us build the foundation instead of standing there!" He shook off the strangeness he had been feeling and walked over to where the three boys were placing a foundation, taking off his shoes and socks before hopping into the water after them. Today was a long day..

\------

...

The sun was high in the sky, it was a beautiful summer day. Two figures sat underneath a tree, talking and laughing.

"Mama..? Why do I look so different from you?"

The question caught the woman off guard, she looked down at the small boy infront of her, his sandy blond hair and green eyes that looked directly up at her. The sheep hybrid shook her head softly, pulling the boy closer to her in a hug, "It's just because you are different, but that's okay, everyone is different, that's what makes us special" she whispered, feeling the boy cling tighter to her, "the other children look like their mamas.." he said into her arms, his words muffled but still recognisable. She gasped quietly, losing her grip of the hug as she moved to see his face, "oh dear... that doesn't matter, because that just makes our family more special! That's why I will always love you, my beautiful little boy" her reply sparked tears in the emerald eyes, but they were shared with a smile, showing the boys missing front tooth.

The sun was lowering in the sky, as the two chased each other through fields of flowers, rolling through them and laughing once one caught the other. They sat on hills eating picnics as the suns set, turning the sky to pinks, reds and oranges. Lay in the grass as shooting stars flew by, making the sky shine with light. Time flew by as the little family enjoyed every second of their time together, soon the boy grew into a teen, standing taller than his ever proud mother. They continued to act as if nothing had changed, she knew her son was still a child at heart, jumping in puddles when it rained, chasing bees through the fields.. hugging her when he was sad.

Nothing had changed.

Until they moved to The SMP. He became distant, slowly visiting her less and less, not acting quite like himself when he did. She blamed herself for not noticing it at first.. now he was gone.. and no one and seen him in so long. As she sat in her flower field, watching the sun set, she held a small drawing in her hand; the scribbly art of a five year old, showing a white ball of fluff and a small blob of green holding hands among the flowers. She gave a watery smile, remembering the day she had been handed the drawing, immediately hanging it up on the wall, much to her son's delight.

"I'm happy you are my mama.." "..I'm happy to be your mama.."

\------

Dream sat on the docks, watching the sun set in silence, as Tommy and the rest of his family spoke in hurried whispers among themselves, talking about boats, communicators and a plan. The ghost ignored them, something about watching the sunset felt familiar to him, giving a warm, fuzzy feeling inside him that seemed to fight out the constant cold within him for once. He swung his legs just above the water, watching the sky turn from blue to pink and yellow, the sun sinking behind a distant snowy mountain. Dream smiled, for the first time since he woke up next to the lake, he felt safe, as if the bright light of the sun was keeping him from the danger of the darkness that loomed just behind it. He sat there until the first stars started to appear, then slowly he got up and left the docks, leaving the darkness behind in favour of finding Tommy and figuring out what he had been whispering about, if the boy wasn't already snoring in his bed..

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Little short chapter :) <3 just because I'm feeling a little under the weather


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three figures walked to the sacred lands, two spectors among them.
> 
> All turns for worse when the darkness gets it's way.

The sky was still filled with stars when the boat was untied from the docks, with the little family balanced inside it. Phil sat at the front, lantern and map in hand. Techno sat at the back, an oar in either hand. Infront of him sat Tommy, holding the bag of supplies they had packed, resting his chin on the top and hugging it as if it was a pillow. Wilbur sat in the only other seat, right in the middle of it, hoping to avoid the water at all costs. Dream sat on the floor between Tommy and Wilbur's seats, he had said he didn't mind and had actually looked like he was about to fall asleep down there at one point.

Tommy had used the communicator to message Tubbo, asking if he could visit L'manburg. His friend had been wary at first, reminding him what would happen if Dream found out, Tommy reassured him that he would be careful. In the end Tubbo agreed, which was the first part of their plan accomplished. Tommy had mentioned he would probably bring along a family member or two, Tubbo mentioned that no one had seen the mysterious green clad teen in ages but no one knew when he could show up. Both told each other how excited they were to see the other and both kept secrets to themselves. 

After Tommy told Phil that Tubbo had accepted, the family set to work, they had to get Dream back his memories, if that didn't work, then maybe they could bring him to someone who could help him. They had been packed in an hour and spent the rest of the day working through plans, or more so Techno and Phil had. Tommy, Wilbur and Dream played hide and seek, where the found out Dream is a very good seeker and can become very competitive and scary.

They set out early in the morning, Tommy was still tired and kept yawning. Phil told him he could sleep if he wanted and they would wake him up once they arrived but he was refusing. The younger ghost had been keeping him occupied by pointing out water-skaters, different fish and birds as the moved through the water, of course neither of them could name them, but it was still enjoyable. The boat was relatively quiet as the sun started to rise, Tommy was half asleep on the bag in his arms and Dream hadn't pointed out anything in over thirty minutes. Techno was still rowing the boat, the noise of the water being disturbed was a calming rhythm that was sending Tommy to sleep. Phil was quietly checking the map and the surrounding area, while Wilbur watched the sun rise with a smile on his face. At some point both blond teens had fallen asleep, Wilbur laughed and pointed it out to Phil, who smiled and whispered that he should have brought a camera.

\-------

"-mmy.. wake up, Tommy!" Someone was gently shaking his shoulders, slowly opening his eyes, he saw Wilbur infront of him, "good morning Tommy, do you want to let Tubbo know we are almost there?" He took the bag from his brother, letting him use the communicator as he manoeuvred back over to his seat. Tommy quickly typed and sent a message to Tubbo, checking and rechecking his spelling before sending it off, a groggy smile on his face. "What time is it?" He asked, the sky was still pink, but the sun was definitely higher than he last remembered it being. "Around six thirty" Techno replied, the splash of water stopping for a second a he rolled his shoulders, "we should be there soon enough." Tommy was almost shaking with giddiness, he couldn't wait to get there. Even with the whole trying to sneak the ghost of one of the most powerful people into the country thing, Tommy was just excited to see his best friend. 

When the finally reached the docks of L'manburg, Dream had a blanket thrown over him, he didn't have the chance to object considering he was still sleeping. They didn't want to overwhelm Tubbo with too much and considering the boy was already standing on the docks they didn't have much of a choice. As the boat neared the dock, Tubbo spotted them and began waving, Tommy waving back with a bright smile on his face. Once they got close enough Phil threw Tubbo the rope and the boy tied it on, keeping the boat in place. He began helping everyone out, however Techno was still in the boat when he was tackled by Tommy. Both boys hitting the ground in a fit of laughter, yelling and hugging. Phil helped Techno out of the boat, "You two can go on ahead and catch up, I need to visit my house first, but we can meet up later!" Both teens nodded enthusiastically, "Alright!" They cheered in unison, already running off the docks to explore together. Leaving the other three to get the rest out of the boat.

"Let's get this to my house"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sicvbk,, hnngh


	11. Caught

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I don't know who you are.."
> 
> "Oh but you do! I've been with you for so long you didn't even notice"
> 
> "No.. you aren't.. you-"
> 
> "I'm the bad guy? Well so are you."

It hadn’t taken long to get to Phil’s house, Wilbur opened the door almost letting it swing close and hit Techno in the face, he was carrying the blanket Dream lay beneath and the bag of supplies they had packed. Once Phil closed the door behind them, Techno dropped the load out of his arms and it hit the floor before either Phil or Wilbur could move to save it. The pinkett grunted, sliding the bag of his shoulders and dumping it next to the somehow still sleeping ghost. Ignoring the looks his twin was giving him, he dug through his pockets producing an invisibility splash, “I’ll be off, got to make sure Tommy doesn’t commit a crime then. See you two later.” and before either family member could object he had already exited the house and was quickly disappearing from their view. 

Wilbur moved away from the window, floating over to the sleeping ghost and trying to shake them awake, for a ghost- he sure could sleep. Phil started gathering the few things he had left in this house, as they would definitely need it to repair what was now a snow and ice filled building. Which hopefully wouldn’t take too long to do. He was still rummaging through a chest when he heard Wilbur give a cheery, "Good morning!" signalling that the blond ghost had finally woken up, however Phil didn't turn around. instead continuing to concentrate on searching through the chest. So when something cold touches his sleeve he jumped, dropping the items that had just been in his hands. The cold disappeared and the older blond turned to see the young ghost scrambling to move back from him, "I- I'm sorry for scaring you- I jus- I just wanted to tell you that Wilbur left.." the young blond meekly supplied, now sitting next to the blanket he had been sleeping under only a few minutes ago. Phil just looked at him, he was taking in every detail of the ghosts face under a scrutinizing gaze. Without saying a word to the ghost, he turned back to the chests and continued sorting through them.

Acting as if he wasn't there.

Because despite everything, the ghost was still Dream.

Wilbur arrived back at the house, it was near the time they were supposed to meet up with Tommy and Tubbo. Putting the blue he had gathered into his pockets, he opened the door, greeting Phil who still seemed to be sorting through his items and- no one else was inside. "Oh? Phil, where is Dream? We have to go meet up with Tommy and the others soon.." His father turned at the words, looking around the room as the expression on his face slowly grew dark.

"I don't know where he is."

\--------

Tommy laughed as Tubbo ran around the bee house, the bees following him with cheerful buzzing. It was nearing the time they were supposed to meet up with the rest of his family, but the two of them were having too much fun to head there right now, deciding it would be okay if they were a little late. As Tubbo ran out of view again, something cold touches Tommy's shoulder, leading him to jump almost a foot in the air.

"What the fu-- … Dream?" His voice dropped to a whisper, hoping Tubbo wouldn't hear them, "what are you doing here?" He asked, whirling around to face the ghost behind him. The ghost shrugged, awkwardly wringing their hands, "I'm sorry" he whispered, chewing on his lip. Tommy could only shake his head, "it's fine Big D.. it's just you can't be seen or we are in trou-" both of them froze as they heard hurried footsteps and laughter coming towards them, followed by a soft buzz. Tommy turned to see Tubbo had turned the corner and was running towards them, he couldn't see Dream anymore and silently hoped he was hiding. Tubbo finally reached his best friend and stopped running, hands on his knees as he caught his breath, letting the air fill his lungs. "We should probably catch up with the others, right? I'll just get my breath back and then we can head over!" Tubbo leaned lightly on a bee box, still taking deep breaths when he spotted something he never thought he would see..

"Tommy!?" He called out in fear

\----

He was in trouble.

The brunet had screamed in his face, luckily Techno had showed up and had gotten all of them back to Phil's house without anyone else noticing. The boy had even stayed quiet until they got there..

So it wasn't that bad, right?

He knew that was a lie.

It was the way they looked at him, the emotions varying from upset to angry, disappointed to fear. Their glances never lasting more than a few seconds.

He had messed up again.

Stuck by himself in the corner of the room, wringing his hands, pulling at his sleeves. Like a child left to play while the adults spoke in hushed whispers. His name cropped up far too often for the conversation not to be about him.

His death.

He flinched at the mention of the word. He didn't want to think about it, he doesn't want to remember. Not his death, not why the bee boy had screamed in fear when he saw him. 

He didn't want to be the bad guy people were scared of.. He didn't- he wasn't- he couldn't be.. He had no memories. He had no idea if it was true.

Maybe he was.

He didn't realise he had started crying until the yellow sleeves of Wilbur's jumper appeared in his field of vision, wrapping around him in a hug. He couldn't hear the others speaking, not with the elder ghost's hushed calming whispers. Nor could he see them, the hug blocked his view, for once he was okay with not being able to see, instead burying his head into Wilbur's shoulder and wishing he hadn't left his mask next to the supplies bag. The bag that currently sat on the floor, right next to where Tubbo stood.

He hated people seeing his emotions.

He hated their eyes.

Wilbur's arms shifted, hiding him from view.. Did he know? It didn't matter.. he was away from the stares. Safe. They couldn't see him. He silently thanked Wilbur as he grounded himself in the hug.

\----

"No. We can't do that." 

It was getting late, the sun was setting on L'manburg, as the family and Tubbo sat around the table talking… arguing.

"What choice do we have? What if I hadn't been there to save your asses-"

"We came here to help him with his memories! That isn't going to help!" Tommy yelled, pounding his fists on the table in anger. The two ghosts were upstairs, Wilbur trying to keep Dream distracted from the conversation, while also keeping an eye on him. 

"Tommy. He has already been seen by Tubbo, we may as well let them know! They literally know the most about-'' Phil was cut off by the two early teens speaking at the same time.

"How do you tell someone their best friend is dead.."

It stopped the conversation. They would have to tell them at some point, but they were right. How do you tell someone that?

"We have to do it. Unless we lie to their faces and tell them we haven't seen him. We are going to be here for a while, the chances we run into them aren't low you know" Techno was right. Both boys knew that, although neither one wanted to agree to the plan. Neither teen wanted to tell someone their friend had died and was now living as a terrified ghost who looked to be ten years old and was constantly at a freezing temperature.

Who would want to be told that?

"It's late.. you should head to bed Tommy, you can stay over if you want Tubbo" Phil told them, to which Tubbo gratefully accepted, both of them trudged upstairs and found themselves face to face with the Wilbur, Dream sat in a corner making a small makeshift stuffed animal walk up and down the floorboards. "Going to bed?" Wilbur asked the boys, producing another blanket and pillow from the bag of supplies. "Have a good sleep! We have a lot of exploring to do tomorrow" his smile was enough to calm both the boys and they quickly settled down and got ready to sleep. The only light in the room was a small lantern in the corner where Dream and Wilbur spoke in whispers. Tubbo was asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow, however Tommy was awake long enough to hear the quiet whisper leave the young ghost's mouth,

"Sleep well.. my- my friends"

\-----

It was early in the morning.

They had eaten a quick breakfast, then Tubbo had used his communicator to find out where George and Sapnap where. Which just so happened to be the community house, of course.. they were rebuilding it. 

Of course the others didn't know that.. which meant they had plenty of conversation on the walk there, as Tubbo had to explain the anonymous pyromaniac who was targeting random building in The SMP. "The first attack was the Community house," he explained to Phil and Tommy, Techno was obviously not paying attention and Wilbur was pointing out the floating buildings and decorations to Dream as they passed. "It was the biggest attack, we found the ashes of the house the morning after, since then there have been more attacks, but none have reached that level of out of control. It's odd" 

Tommy squinted, "isn't that a good thing?" He seemed confused, "it means nothing else has been burned down." Phil answered for Tubbo, which was great since he was starting to get tired from talking, "Tommy it's odd because despite their preparations, they don't need them, the fires are weak and don't spread. It would bring up the question of why the community house burned to ashes" Tubbo nodded his approval at Phil.

"Yeah, people are still rebuilding the community house- well mostly George and Sapnap.. although I have seen Quackity and Ranboo around th we a lot- oh look.. they are all there right now.." Tubbo waved awkwardly, Tommy mimicking his movement as they got closer to the group, the rest of the family lagging behind slightly. Quackity immediately threw himself at Tommy, holding the teen in a tight hug, while Ranboo gave him a bright smile, asking him how he was doing.

The conversation was pleasant, until Quackity asked a question, "What happens if Dream finds out you are here, Tommy? I really don't need you dying after you just got back-" Tommy was about to answer when George and Sapnap descended the scaffolding, neither made a move to attack him. George nodded to his family, Sapnap greeted Tubbo, then the older brunet repeated the question, "Ye- yeah what happens if Dream catches you Tommy? What if he comes back and catches you here, right now" Tommy felt himself cringe.. this was so awkward.. he couldn't answer it.

Thank Prime that Wilbur was there, "Why don't you guys take a break from building for awhile, I'm sure we all have catching up to do, especially about why the community house is burnt down. Then we can talk about Dream, once we are all on the same page"

They all agreed, moving to the grassy bank to sit and talk. No one noticed the small ghost hiding behind Techno and no one questioned it when he sat farther from the group than necessary.

However a cloaked figure saw and standing from their hiding spot in the trees, they clenched their fists in anger.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2k words because there were so many spelling mistakes I had to split it in half.
> 
> Thanks for all the comments wishing me well!! I really appreciated them :) you guys are so sweet! Thanks to the people still giving fan art! Especially those who used the #mcyt_frozenmemories on instagram to find me :D!!
> 
> I'm still not recovered but I'm not too worried as this is a yearly thing anyway!!


	12. Scars don't heal...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "..I don't want to be the bad guy anymore.."
> 
> "Why? The two of us were having so much fun!"
> 
> "You hurt people-"
> 
> "..We hurt people. You are just weak. We are both the bad guys, whether you like it or not.

"Well? You have had your time to catch up. Why are you here?"

George looked as if he was eating something sour, the brunett was wearing his goggles, hiding his eyes from the others and with that his dark circles from sleepless nights. He sat next to Sapnap, neither of them had joined into the conversation, both awaiting the reason that should have been provided straight away. "I assume you have a reason that is?"

Tommy glanced at Tubbo, George followed his gaze. The president gulped once he realized he was being watched and turned away, leaving George with no one else to look at but Tommy, who looked as if he had been told he had to do a handstand and walk blindfolded. Sapnap finally looked over, noticing the silence, "Why do you look so scared? Just give us a reason and get out of here-" George cut him off, "unless you don't have one." The older stated, leaning towards the blond teen, who looked to Techno of all people. However his brother wasn't much help, only answering with:

"Tommy. They aren't asking me" 

Tommy sighed, deciding it was better to just explain, however someone spoke before him, leaving him with his mouth hanging open awkwardly.

"What happened between you two and Dream? Aren't you three nearly always together?" Wilbur had asked the question, the ghost sitting next to Philza, leaning on his father, "Where is he?" Tubbo and Ranboo joined Tommy with looks of confusion, though Phil and Techno both kept blank faces.

George looked to Wilbur in confusion, "I- I asked a question first! Can you seriously not answer-" he looked ready to throw himself at the ghost, only for Sapnap held him back. Although the younger brunett didn't seem happy about the situation either, "George is right! Why can't you just answer our question? It doesn't matter about our status with Dream. This conversation isn't about him- in fact as of right now?"

"I don't give a shit about Dream."

Wilbur only shook his head quietly, "Well that's unfortunate, Tommy?" His brother turned to look at him, still processing what had just been said, "You can tell them the reason, though I doubt it matters very much after what we have just heard."

The blond nodded and audibly gulped, with assuring looks from both Tubbo and Ranboo and a confused squint from Quackity, Tommy began speaking, "Well this is a long story, but it will make sense to the reason.. it started almost a week ago. The snow had just stopped, so me and Wilbur decided to go outside while we could.."

The looks from Quackity only grew more confused, while the brown haired duo looked like they were being made watch paint dry. So Tommy decided to explain a little faster.

"I was running around when I went to this big lake that normally freezes over but it's never solid enough to walk on. In the middle was this huge hole and it was obvious someone had fallen in so I ran over to check. Which is when I saw him.."

"Who did you see Tommy? We don't have all day. Your brother just wasted our time with his-"

"I saw Dream, okay George? I saw him on the ice at the lake!" Tommy's voice rose over the older teen's, "sitting there in ruined clothes and he looked to be frozen! I went to help him- but I couldn't because.. because.."

"Because what Tommy?" Sapnap spoke up, George had gone silent; whether it was Tommy shouting or hearing his friends name after so long it was unknown. Sapnap however was still speaking, even if it was quieeter than before, even if he still held his taunting voice, "scared you would slip on the ice?"

"He couldn't help him because he was dead." Technoblade said from the tree he leaned against, "Dream died, presumably for frozen waters of the lake and Tommy was the one to find him. That answer your question?"

Ranboo ducked his head, as if in respect. Tubbo soon followed, both pretending to not have known of the situation sooner. Quackity looked at the grass awkwardly, he had hated Dream at times, but he made him laugh and when they weren't having wars they were cracking jokes.. he felt bad. He had his moment of silence for the admin of The SMP. George and Sapnap on the other hand, we're both silent, but not for the same reason. The elder looked like he had just been punched in the stomach, the latter staring at Technoblade angrily, but it was if he wasn't really seeing him.

"He isn't.. isn't actually dead is he? This must be some cruel, sick and twisted joke you came up with-" Sapnap managed to choke out, arm leaving George as he balled his hands into fists. George seemed to be struggling to hold back tears, though it wasn't unexpected. Technoblade only shrugged;

"I thought you didn't give a shut about him, Sapnap? Or has that changed now that he is dead" 

The group fell silent, until the enderman hybrid spoke up, looking to Philza, who had not spoken in quite some time, "Do you have a body to bury..? I know some won't want a burial.. but there is definitely someone I can name who will probably want to lay him to rest.."

Phil shook his head, "we never found it.. his death was obviously in the lake.. but for some reason it was gone when we went to retrieve it" Ranboo nodded solemnly, thanking Phil for answering before lapsing back into silence, other than the noise of George's heaving lungs as the teen struggled to hold back tears. Sapnap had his hand on his friends back, ignoring the looks the two of them were being sent by the others. It had only been two minutes, probably the longest two minutes of anyone's life, when Wilbur spoke again. "We.. we did find his ghost though"

Ranboo and Tubbo let out a breath Tommy hadn't seen them holding, both must have been burning to ask about it. Quackity looked at the ghost, eyes wide, searching for a trace he was lying, "Why didn't you say so?? Where is he Wilbur?" 

Wilbur pointed to where Techno stood, Quackity snapped his head to face that direction, Sapnap's gaze following the ghost's finger as well. George was unresponsive. When nothing happened Wilbur huffed, "Techno step to the side!" He yelled over, his brother only rolled his eyes and shrugged, stepping to the side to reveal the short blond ghost. However once the ghost realised they had been spotted, they darted back behind Techno, hiding under his cloak, in a what would be comical fashion, had this been any other situation. When the ghost didn't return from behind Technoblade, it was Quackity who made the first move, standing up and walking towards the tall warrior. 

"Hey buddy.. hello Dream" Quackity called softly to the ghost, peering around Technoblade's form to try see the ghost, "do you remember me?" When no answer came, he answered himself, "well I'm Quackity.. want to.. maybe come out from hiding? I know we weren't the best of friends before, but how about we restart?" He held out his hand, a genuine smile on his face at the chance to start over.

It took a minute, but a small hand reached out and took his.

Ignoring the cold that stung his skin, Quackity cheered in celebration, pulling Dream's ghostly form out from behind a disgruntled Technoblade and bringing him into a hug, which the ghost replicated after a second of confusion. 

"I'm Dream.. nice to meet you Quackity" the ghost grinned, his mask up just far enough on his face that you could see his grin that flashed his teeth. Quackity gave a loud laugh, Tubbo stood up reintroduce himself and Ranboo followed behind. Once the three of them were talking to each other, Tommy got up off the grass and ran over to the group, causing Dream to gravitate towards him. The group was loud and filled with jokes and laughter.

"He's getting better Phil, he has already made friends" Wilbur whispered, turning to his father, who had also been watching the group, "we should have his memories back soon enough if it keeps up like this!" This statement however, Phil shook his head.

"Not without those two we aren't" he nodded in the direction of George and Sapnap, who seemed to have become almost statues since Dream had revealed himself as a ghost. Wilbur eyed them, before nodding understanding.

"..Dream probably heard what they said too.. I doubt he will warm up to them right away.. but I'm sure we can get them talking again at some stage." The ghost supplied to his father, before looking at the brunett with goggles carefully, "However- I think George might need some rest for right now.. he looks like he might collapse after all that crying, don't you think?" 

As the two of them moved to the other group of two and the small group laughed as they finally got Technoblade to join the conversation, a rather disgruntled fox hybrid walked towards the community house, muttering under his breath possible reasons the president would have just disappeared..


	13. ...They fade.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Listen, you either do what I say or I leave you to rot. I don't give a fuck about you and your emotions."
> 
> "..."
> 
> "You brought this upon yourself"

Phil was walking them away from the group, Ghostbur was handing them blue saying it would help them feel better. The air filled with talking and laughing, Quackity and Tommy's scream like laughs echoing past the construction site of the community house. At some point he saw a flash of ginger pass him. It didn't matter. Everything was loud, it was too quiet when things stopped. Lights flashed bright and shadows reached to grab him. The world blurred together in a mess of everything wrong, his tears only ruining the picture painted before him even more than before. 

He was sitting in his house, he didn't remember getting there. His chest hurt, like someone was squeezing it. The blue blur next to him shook as it cried. His eyes burned as the tears continued to fall. Someone was hugging him.. he wasnt sure who.

Didn't matter anymore, not after what he'd just seen.

Dream. 

Dream dead and.. scared of him? 

Cowering behind Technoblade, his eyes wide once he saw them..

His head sunk into the shoulder of whoever held him close, a blur of purple whispering white lies of how everything would be okay . He let himself believe them, clinging tightly to the hug as he tried to ground himself... .. ..dead? Was he really dead..?

Sapnap refused to believe it.

Even if the ache in his chest told him the truth.

\--------

Fundy passed Sapnap, George, Phil and Ghostbur on his way to find Tubbo. He only glanced at them, but it seemed like George was crying- Fundy didn't really care but hadn't they been building the community house? Ranboo was there-

The fox hybrid's pace picked up as he changed his direction to the community house. 

Who knows, maybe Tubbo would be there too.

It didn't take much longer for the construction site of the community house to come into view, near the house, on one of the grass banks he spotted a group of people talking. Tommy's loud laughter immediately capturing his attention.

"..Tommy is back..? Oh Tubbo you could have just told me.." Pinching the bridge of his nose, the fox hybrid continued his way down the path, making his way towards the group. 

He could make out Quackity with his right arm wrapped around Tommy, the two laughing loudly as Tommy ruffled Tubbo's hair. Ranboo stood next to Technoblade, the two of them smiling and joining in on the conversation, but not loudly laughing like the others. 

However one thing caught his eye..

A flash of white and blue under Quackity's left arm, they were mostly hidden his view.

He had been walking up until then, but seeing someone new piqued his interest enough for him to begin jogging towards the group. As he neared them, he called out, "Hey Tommy! Nice to see you back!!" They all turned to see him, Tommy waving with both arms wildly, while Quackity moved as to not get hit by his arms and Tubbo sent a quick wave his way. Ranboo and Techno stopped their own conversation to greet him, waving happily and giving a nod towards him respectively. 

By the time he reached them Tommy had all but jumped into his arms, Tubbo following soon after as he couldn't resist a group hug. The others watched, and quickly welcomed the fox hybrid into the conversation Quackity throwing his left arm over his shoulder as they caught up..

..His left arm..??

Fundy quickly scanned the group around him.

..there was no white or blue person among the group.. 

As there was a lull in the conversation, the fox hybrid spoke up again, "Hey guys..?"

"..Was there someone else here?"

\--------

Puffy was baking when Phil and Wilbur walked in, Niki greeted them at the counter and soon they got caught up in a conversation. Taking the muffins out of the oven to cool, Puffy patted her hands down on her apron and joined Niki at the counter, being easily welcomed into the conversation by the others.

"Tommy and Techno are here too, down by the community with a few others" Phil was telling them, "Tubbo welcomed us in earlier yesterday but we only really got out and about today"

Niki nodded, immediately being thrown into another conversation by Wilbur. Puffy however seemed worried..

"What about Dream?" She asked the older blond from behind the counter, "What if he finds out.. I.. I haven't seen him in a while- but I don't want my reunion with him to be you and your family getting in trouble"

Phil seemed to shrink at the statement, a guilty look crossing his face, however before Puffy could question him.. a shriek came from across the bakery, both of the turning to see Wilbur trying to shove his beanie onto Niki's head while the girl scrambled and waved her arms like windmills. Puffy and Phil immediately rushed over in concern, separating the two easily. As Phil lectured Wilbur, Puffy tried to calm Niki only for the girl to stutter out something the sheep hybrid couldn't have expected.

"I saw a dead boy outside the window!"

Everyone froze, Puffy immediately snapped her head towards the window, only to see white hair peaking up abover the window sill.

".. no.. no way.."

Her breath hitched as she walked towards to window, trying to take a better look,

"..duckling?"

\------

"Someone else?? What are you talking about Fundy?" Tommy's voice carried over to Ranboo's ears and the hybrid took a deep breath before turning back to Techno, who's face only grew more worried. He definitely wasn't here.

Ranboo nodded and closed his eyes tightly, concentrating hard on where he needed to go.. hearing the soft whispers of air as he teleported he opened his eyes..

Only to see Karl sitting with a sleeping Sapnap on his lap, running his hands through the boy's hair. George sat on the other side of the couch, snoring. 

Phil and Wilbur were no where to be seen..

Karl seemed to jump when he noticed Ranboo standing there, but thankfully didn't make any noise, instead motioning for the hybrid to come closer to him. He obliged, tip toeing towards him and leaning down so Karl could whisper easily into his ear, "who are you looking for..? I don't think either of them will be okay for a while.." the teen motioned to the others, however he didn't mention why they were upset.. so maybe he didn't know..

Ranboo nodded before turning back to Karl to whisper a reply, "I'm looking for Phil and Wilbur, they are back in L'Marburg today" he didn't mention why he was looking for them or why they were back. Karl nodded anyway, not pressing the subject.

"They went to Niki and Puffy's bakery" he told the hybrid, who smiled happily at the answer. "Thank you Karl" Ranboo whispered, before disappearing in a swirl of purple.

He had gotten away with finding out where Dream could be without asking where Dream could be! Pumping his fist in the air with victory, he quietly and quickly made his was to the bakery and opened the door..

However once inside he found only chaos.

Puffy was sobbing as Niki tried to console the hybrid, despite tears streaming down her own face, Phil was standing awkwardly in the middle of the bakery and Wilbur was holding a cowering Dream and whispering something into the ghost's ear. The enderman hybrid took a deep breath and turned on his heel to walk back outside when he was spotted by the others.

"Ranboo.. help me out here?" Niki asked, holding the sobbing sheep hybrid in her arms, Ranboo gave a nod, knowing he didn't have much of a choice and walked over to where the girl's stood, wrapping his arms around the two of them as Puffy's sobs grew quieter. Soon you could only hear Wilbur's whispers and Puffy's sniffling. The bakery was thick with tension, the awkwardness was a lot to deal with.

"Do you remember them Dream? .... oh no, no- they aren't angry at you! Sometimes people get upset when they see ghosts... you want to try remember..? Just even a minute to try and remember them, okay?"

All eyes were suddenly on the ghosts, Puffy untangled herself from the hug, her eyes red from crying. Dream looked from Wilbur to her then back at Wilbur, the older ghost only nodded and nudged him towards the sheep hybrid. She held her arms open slightly in wait. The ghostly boy floated over to her, taking one of her hands in his. Despite the bitter cold that threatened to make Puffy shiver, she stood very still, letting the ghost look her up and down until a smile appeared from behind his mask. 

"..Mama..?" 

Puffy could have cheered with joy, but seeing how the ghost in front of her looked ready to cry, she instead pulled him into a hug, sinking to her knees as the weight of everything truly hit her. The little family sat on the floor in the middle of the bakery, holding each other like they were the only ones left on the earth.

"..Oh duckling.. what happened to you.."

Dream took a deep breath, and tried to explain all he remembered, "..I woke up near a lake.."

\------

Technoblade's communicator buzzed, turning from the group who were still bantering around but now doing so while rebuilding the community house, he opened it to see a message from Ranboo.

>Techno, I found him,,,

>Where? Has anyone else seen him?

>He's with Phil and Wilbur currently..  
>At Niki and Puffy's bakery... ..

>So they saw him didn't they?

>..yeah

Techno could only shake his head in amusement, who knew the ghost of the most powerful person on The SMP would act so much like an unruly child they had to babysit

>Is everything going okay over there?

>Dream was telling Puffy what he remembered- and well he got to this part about a basement and now she is looking at Phil like she could hit him

>..oh.   
>He didn't mention me, did he?

>..no?

>good, thank you Ranboo, I'll talk with you later!

Technoblade didn't give Ranboo time to send goodbye, he closed his communicator and set to work on helping rebuild the community house, before he heard Tommy loudly complain about someone not helping for the sixth time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I uh updated ghost!Dream's design to fit the fact that I updated my Dream design :) because I think white hair Dream is cooler


	14. Dark reality

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It seems unforgiving.
> 
> He brought this upon himself. Yet they still cared about him.. because they cried and hugged him. The darkness had lied, he knew that. 
> 
> He knew the truth now.
> 
> The boy picked himself off of the ground and walked away from the darkness. Towards the light.
> 
> The darkness laughed.

Things had calmed down considerably in the bakery, Dream was now giggling at the jokes and stories being told, although Puffy still sent glares Phil's way. 

She had not been happy when she heard about the basement.

Otherwise the group was in high spirits.. or as happy as you can be after seeing the ghost of your friend.. it was after the third baking accident story Niki had told that their communicators buzzed at once. A message from Tommy lit up the screen:

>Hey big man Phil are you and Wilbur coming back soon? We could use some help with construction

>Hey big man?

>Hello?

The group laughed, all agreeing silently that they would go help with the community house, heading out of the cafe in high spirits. As they walked Wilbur, Ranboo and Niki spent time pointing out buildings and decorations to Dream, who was enthusiastic about every single thing shown to him. Puffy and Phil fell into step with each other, the two in full conversation, somewhere along the line Puffy forgave him for the basement incident.. she didn't mention how Phil seemed to never look directly at either of the ghosts. She had her suspicions anyway.

One being how Wilbur's final life was taken..

..The final song of his show before the curtain dropped and the stage became dark. Phil had been the one to put a stop to it.

She doubted he had truly forgiven himself.

Dream's on the other hand? That was another house of cards she didn't wish to make tumble to the ground. She decided not to guess at it, instead letting the easy conversation continue between the two of them. Ahead of them the others had strayed from the path, watching as the small ghost plucked flowers from the path and handed them out carefully to each one of them. Grabbing extras for those at the community house, since he was allowed to be seen by them now. The conversation between the group was light and filled with jokes, they continued walking to the community house- often trading flowers with the white haired ghost as he found one he thought better suited them, his mask moved up slightly so his bright smile was on show.

They had not only let their guard down, but had removed the walls that were in place since the first war. 

It was truly peaceful.

_ Boringly so. _

\-----

Tommy watched a group approach from the distance, spotting Philza immediately with his large wings, the sheep hybrid sea captain walking next to him, both deep in conversation by the looks of it.. probably about boring things like porridge. Wilbur and Niki were in front of the group, the two of them talking about something rather animatedly, Niki holding a small bunch of flowers in her hands. Ranboo stood in the middle of the group, his arms filled with flowers and a bright smile on the teen hybrid's face. Next to him was a flash of white and blue, carrying what looked to be even more flowers.

Tommy couldn't help the smile that crept onto his face, Dream obviously hadn't seen many flowers over in the snow and must be fascinated by them.

He waved to the group as they got closer to the house, alerting the others who were still building. Quackity and Tubbo were quick to drop what they were going and begin waving as well, it had only been an hour since Phil and Wilbur had disappeared- Ranboo left half an hour ago, but the group was in high spirits and was ready to welcome any help or anyone to speak with. Tommy felt a small nagging voice in the back of his mind, 

_"When did Dream leave? You didn't see him leave.. yet there he is with the others."_

The blond teen pushed it back, ignoring the voice, he had no need to worry. Everyone was happy, Quackity and Dream had made up despite all odds, the two almost always being against each other. Techno had spoken earlier about Phil finally looking at Wilbur, which made Tommy smile at just the thought of his father slowly recovering.

They were _all_ recovering.

A blur of ginger snapped him out of his thoughts, someone running towards the scaffolding and making their way down. Tommy didn't move, the nagging voice speaking again as Tubbo and Quackity ran past to follow whoever had descended the scaffolding.

_"Fundy hasn't gotten the chance.. you didn't prepare him…"_

It finally clicked into place.

Fundy had seen Dream.. and he didn't wait to let the ghost reach him. He ran towards the group to see for himself.

Tommy was still scrambling down the scaffolding after Technoblade when a loud scream alerted the him, his head snapping to the direction of the noise seeing the fox hybrid standing in the middle of the group that had been approaching. As though someone had wrapped a hand around it and pulled, the blond felt his heart tug. He couldn't imagine how Fundy felt, not after his and Dream's history of dates, hugging each other when they met on the path and of course the small gifts the white haired teen had always left for the hybrid.

Tommy didn't need to imagine when he heard the first sob tear at Fundy's throat, Puffy already at his side and pulling him into a well deserved hug from where he had dropped to his knees.

Sure the two had fought before..

_..but heartbreak was a battle many were not fortunate to triumph.._

The group watched as the world seemed to slow to a stop and only the cries of a broken heart could be heard.

\-----

Half an hour later they sat in the bottom floor of the community house, huddled together in the corner where the only furniture in the house was placed. Those who couldn't fit on a seat had chosen the floor, sitting on the small, soft carpet that lined the floor, though it was yet to cover the rest of the floor 

Technoblade was on the roof, finishing placing the last few blocks needed. He had excused himself earlier, muttering something about not being needed at the moment.

At some point Fundy had stopped crying, at another point in the strange slowed version of time, Dream had hugged the hybrid, whispering things about remembering who he was. No cheers of happiness came when he remembered, only quite sniffles and movements to get everyone inside.

Now they sat inside, telling stories , making light jokes, retelling adventures and tales. Dream chimed in every so often, stating he remembered that happening and tried to add in his piece. Often he had remembered wrong and needed a helping hand in getting back on track, but the others were patient and understanding and of course the white haired ghost was ready to learn.

Tommy currently sat on the arm of the sofa, Puffy, Phil and Niki sat next to each other on the chair, Phil had his arms on his legs so Tommy could use the arm. Quackity and Tubbo had squished themselves into an arm chair, Tubbo sitting with his knees to his chest, while Quackity had his swung over the arm. Ranboo sat in front of them, his back leaning against the chair, Wilbur sat just within reach of him, sitting criss cross. Fundy sat on the other armchair, the small ghost sitting on the arm of the chair. He had moved to there after noticing the fox hybrid shivering from his constant cold temperature.

The group seemed like a family.. a rather large and strange family, but a family at that. It was impossible to miss the way they smiled when others told stories or laughed when another joked.

Dream smiled from behind his mask.

He did have a family..

..and they were there to help him.

The boy was pulled from his thoughts as Tommy started another loud rambling about a story that everyone was sure was fake, Dream however wasn't too sure and let it slide, eagerly asking the teen questions whenever the boy stopped to breathe and let someone get a word in edge ways. After Tommy started talking about how all the ladies loved him, he was cut off by a loud laugh erupting from Tubbo's mouth, the noise startling the blond enough that he stopped speaking causing the others to soon join in laughing.

Dream watched as Fundy laughed along, finally getting that spark back in his eyes, squeezing the fox hybrid's hand lightly the ghostly boy tried to hold back a laugh as Tommy began defending himself, calling himself a "big man who was loved by women"

...  
..  
.

Dream ignored the feeling of someone watching him. He was just being paranoid, because everyone in the room was watching Tommy, not him. He ignored how he felt as if something bad was following him. He wasn't  
even near the door, whatever was after him would have to get through at least nine people to get to him. He ignored the feeling of being enveloped by the darkness. The feeling of something being too close for comfort.

Dream smiled and laughed at the embarrassing stories being told as Tommy hid his now red face.

He ignored how the small voice in the back of his mind told him to get out of there, to leave the house immediately. Ignored how it screamed that something was wrong. 

Nothing was wrong, he was safe. He had his family.

He noticed Fundy's eyeing him worridly and gave him a smile, shooting a quick thumbs up at him. The hybrid smiled and the two of them returned to the conversation, which had now been taken by Phil, who was recalling things that Tommy had done as a baby, much to the blond's dismay. 

The group greeted Techno as he finally appeared down the stairs, sitting down on the ground and listening in on the conversation. Something seemed off about him, but since nobody else said anything, Dream let it slide.

He ignored whatever voice had gotten so paranoid in the last few minutes and let himself get lots in the stories.

Just missing how barricades were appearing outside the doors of the community house.

\-----

They stood in front of the newly rebuilt building, sneering in disgust.

The first time hadn't been warning enough, as they had rebuilt it with ease, now sitting inside talking amongst themselves.

It hadn't taken long to find one alone and take what they needed.

As practiced hands grabbed the match box and light the match in one swipe, a smile appeared on their face.

"Maybe casualties is what you need to get the message.."

The match was flung through the air, landing on the scaffolding still surrounding the community house.

The figure turned and walked back across the bridge.

"..Goodbye.."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To clear a few things up :)!
> 
> Lavender is not me! She thankfully drew the designs for me because I was really unhappy with what I drew they can be found on #mcyt_frozenmemories !!
> 
> I have made an instagram account for talking about what I write and other things!! It's @stars_and_snowflakes_ on instagram !!
> 
> Sorry for taking so long! Honestly didn't feel happy about my writing and felt like just quitting the story. Jay and Leo fans gc had a vc with me for about an hour helping me write this and making me feel better so huge thanks to them for getting me back in the swing of things!!


	15. To End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This story has been cancelled,, sorry.  
> In all honesty it was my first story and I wasn't well prepared. This is just a run down on what should have happened before I cancelled.
> 
> I am working with another writer to bring a new story to life, so see you there !!

> Dream is first to notice the smoke, he tries to get everyone out but it seems every exit is blocked off.

>Technoblade seems dazed, and hasn't moved from his place since he came back downstairs.

>The community house begins to fill with smoke, leaving everyone to scramble around, in either an attempt to escape or get on the floor.

>Others begin to notice that the building is going up in flames, they gather up supplies and rush to put it out, once they get there however they see a cloaked figure.

>The figure towers over all of them, with demon like horns and a mask over their face, the mask is cracked in dozens of places and does not have any design.

>Sapnap catches sight of the fire starter and in a desperate act of bravery or stupidity, he jumps at the figure, only for it to disappear and reappear on the roof.

>The figure begins to explain everything, how they were a demon that controlled their friend and this world's admin. How it had taken full control of the body when their friend drowned in the frozen lake. How the demon had then planned to burn the SMP to the ground.

>As they explain, a window is broken and the group inside escape, although no one really notices. A ghostly boy dressed in blue appears next to the demon just as he finishes speaking.

>The attention is on the two of them, the two seem to be talking, yet no one can hear them, it is as if a barrier was put between the two enemies and the rest of the inhabitants of the world.

>From Dream's pov, it is a very loud argument over what is going to happen next, and how he won't let the demon harm anyone else. The demon looks as if he wants the fight to get physical, but it is impossible to punch a ghost in the face. Although Dream doesn't remember much of anyone, he knows they were special before and does his best to fight the darkness emitting from the demon so he can keep them safe. 

>The arguement continues for a little longer, before the ghostly boy says something that stops the darkness in their tracks. "What about a deal?"

> The pov switches back to those outside the fight, they had noticed those who had escaped and quickly helped them out of the water and had done their best to dry them off. Others had done their best to douse the fire eating away at the house, but now all eyes were on the pair arguing. Suddenly the two on the roof stopped moving, and the ghost held out his hand. The demon stopped for a moment, before taking the hand and gripping it firmly.

>The two disappeared in a flash of light. Leaving the members of the SMP alone, infront of the half destroyed community house. It was as if time had frozen in place, until sobs could be heard from the crowd, it was unsure if they were happy or mourning. Soon everyone was gathered around, celebrating the disappearance of the darkness that plagued their land, but mourning the admin who gave it to them.

>Festival's were thrown in honor of the admin, who even in death had not given up their selflessness. The SMP celebrated for days, decorations covered the streets and buildings of the lands, the members had never been closer before.

>They were like one big family, united through the second death of the boy who cared all too much.

>In a field, just a few chunks away from the main SMP, a small boy clad in blue and greens appeared, disoriented and with little to no memory of how they got there. However, after hearing the music coming from not far away, they decided the best course of action would be to check it out. So the story ends, with a small boy trekking across the land towards the festival, a small demon like tail swishing behind him as he walked.


End file.
